


A Matter of Pride

by Armed_With_Knitting_Needles



Series: A Matter of Time [2]
Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
Genre: Gen, Language Barrier, Minor Character Death, PTSD, Panic Attacks, War, Warnings to be added, but NOT gritty realism, sequel to a matter of justice, this is dark
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-25
Updated: 2020-04-02
Packaged: 2020-07-19 08:48:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 23,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19971295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Armed_With_Knitting_Needles/pseuds/Armed_With_Knitting_Needles
Summary: War is on the horizon. By trying to do the right thing, Link fears he has doomed Hyrule to a terrible fate. His worst enemy is free and justly so. He made sure of it. Now, all he can do is desperately try and stop the coming war.Zelda doesn't want a war. She wants her father's respect. She wants to understand why Link did what he did. She wants to kill Ganondorf. She doesn't want a war, but she doesn't know how to stop it.





	1. New Decisions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a direct sequel to "A Matter of Justice". While I have tried to summarize as much as possible within the story, it will make much more sense if you read its prequel.
> 
> For those of you who have read "A Matter of Justice", I'm warning you now that this is darker. I will be discussing topics of war, PTSD, grief, and shades of morality. I seriously considered an M rating and may still bump it up once I get to a certain scene. I decided to stick to a T rating for two reasons. One, there is no sexual content whatsoever and the violence is not graphic. Two, if I were reading this at age thirteen, I would have loved it. 
> 
> For the Gerudo language I am using Va Eheniv made by Nina-Kristine Johnson. You can find her on tumblr @gerudoshikyapril.
> 
> Also, thank you to fandomauspistice on tumblr who suggested the series title "A Matter of Time"

It was near sunset the day after Ganondorf's trial when they finally teleported back to the Gerudo Fortress. The Gerudo Warriors stood just outside the Lost Woods making the final preparations. Link was still in shock, with his few belongings in a bag on his back. Ganondorf couldn't be punished for the Great Deku Tree's Death. Oh, he was involved all right, he did tell the Gohma the Great Deku Tree was a good place for her nest, but he never broke any Kokiri laws. He didn't lie, he never broke his deal, and he didn't directly kill the Great Deku Tree. In fact, he had offered a deal that would have saved him multiple times. Link didn't want to believe it, but he saw it. The whole forest saw it. It was indisputable.

It was also indisputable that he was a danger to the world. That's why Link was traveling with them to the Gerudo Fortress. Well, it was part of the reason. Ganondorf did need watching, but Link was also Hylian, not Kokiri, and he was growing up. He couldn't stay in the Kokiri Forest and he was no longer welcome in Hyrule. It was his fault Ganondorf was free after all. He was the one who insisted that the future King of Evil would only be tried for what he had already done. Zelda must hate him.

He could worry about that later, though. He had to deal with his trip to the Gerudo Fortress first. He was terrified, but he knew he couldn't show it. Ganondorf was not five feet away from him and Link could do nothing about it. He would just have to put on a brave face for now. Ganondorf would start acting on the other parts of his plans eventually. Link could kill him when that happened. For now, he had to be patient.

Link's thought were interrupted by Kotake's clapping. She cackled at three of the seven Gerudo and Link jumped. "Alright! Are we all ready to go? Are the horses ready?" the Gerudo warrior holding the reigns of the horses nodded, "Good. Good," she turned a sharp eye to Link and he resisted taking a step back, "Are you sure you have all your things, Link? We won't be coming back any time soon."

Link swallowed and nodded, sneaking one last look back at the forest. He didn't want to leave. Kotake kept eyeing him for a few seconds before she nodded. "Alright! We need to be going then. Ganny, come help your poor, old mother activate this spell."

Ganondorf, who had been helping strap bags to a horse, rolled his eyes and walked over to his mother. Link eyed him warily. He didn't want anything to do with Ganondorf's or his mother's magic.

Ganondorf rolled his shoulders and raised his hands in front of him. Kotake mirrored his actions. In between them, a portal started to grow. It was small at first, only a few inches across, but was soon was big enough for even Ganondorf to step through easily. On the other side, Link could clearly see the Gerudo Fortress in all its sandy glory.

Kotake lowered her hands and dusted them off on her dress. "There, that should be stable until we get through. Nabooru, Ganny, you two are going first. The rest of us will follow."

Link watched as Ganondorf squared his shoulders and stepped through the portal, Nabooru to his right. The other Gerudo warriors started to follow with their horses. Link made a move to trail in beside them, but Kotake put a hand out to stop him. Link froze. She had acted reasonable enough so far, but he still vividly remembered his fight with Twinrova. She could freeze him where he stood if he wanted. Link glanced quickly back towards the forest. They were still so close; surely she understood that even if the Kokiri couldn't leave, other forest creatures could. But... at the same time, she hadn't struck him as particularly sane before. He prepared himself to run and glanced at the powerful sorceress next to him. Her mouth was pursed in a thin line and Link hesitated.

"You best stick with me," she said, "The council isn't happy with this business. Their reaction to you may be unpleasant."

Link's brow furrowed. What did that mean? He knew that he wasn't going to be well like, but how would sticking to Kotake change anything?

Kotake laughed at his confusion, "You have a lot to learn, boy. Now, come, we have business to attend to!" With that, she led him through the portal.

On the other side, the Fortress was already in an uproar. Nabooru was giving orders to Gerudo guards in a language Link vaguely recognized. Women were sprinting both towards them to see what the commotion was about and away to go get others or spread the news that their king had returned. The king in question was silent and scowling with his arms crossed. To Link, he looked like Mido when he wasn't getting his way, which was more than a little disconcerting.

More yelling came from one of the fortress doors and a large group of women started in the direction of the portal. Most were elderly and Koume was near the front. Her eyes widened as she saw Ganondorf. With surprising speed and agility, she swung herself onto her broom and raced over, leaving the other women cursing and grumbling in her wake.

She pulled so close to Ganondorf that Link thought she was going to run into him and hopped off her broom.

"Well!" she exclaimed, "Get down here and let your poor old mother take a look at you."

Link swore he saw Ganondorf roll his eyes as he crouched down to greet his mother. He looked sheepish.

"Mother, I-"

There was a loud crack as Koume hit Ganondorf over the head with her broom. "You foolish boy!" she scolded, "You had us worried sick! What would we have done if... if..." She didn't finish the sentence. Instead she hugged him tightly. Link stared at them. It was a surreal experience to watch the man he had been forced to kill in another time hug his mother.

The moment was interrupted by a sharp "Ahem". The group of other elderly women had finally made their way over. They had expressions ranging from glee to disbelief to anger. The women who had coughed stepped forward. She looked as old as the twins, but had a ramrod straight back and carried a sword. He would have had to have been blind not to recognize her as a warrior.

"Ahem," she started again, "While we are all glad that out king has returned to us, I believe we are owed an explanation," she paused, "And, by the sands, why are we speaking Hylian!?"

Kotake grinned as she nodded to Link, "We have a guest." Link knew he was right not to trust the women as chaos erupted around him. There was noise from all directions. The elderly Gerudo shouted at each other as they pointed at him and gestured wildly. The guards, who previously hadn't noticed him, were suddenly aiming their spears at his head. Kotake cackled and Link glared at her. The elderly warrior who had spoken first held up her hand and the chaos petered off.

"It seems," she bit out, "that we have much to discuss. We will continue this indoors." With that, she turned on her heal and started walking back towards the fortress, the crowd trickling after her. Ganondorf was messaging his temples with one hand as he walked.

Link stumbled as he was pushed along by both the guards and the steady flow of people. Kotake patted him on the back and winked at him. He glared at her with enough force to melt glaciers. She only laughed.

They walked through the fortress at an agonizingly slow pace. Link supposed it was necessary with all the elderly Gerudo in their party, but it made it so that he was acutely aware of the eyes watching him from doorways and interior windows. He vaguely wondered if this was what outsiders felt like in the Lost Woods.

Eventually, they made their way into a large, square room. The walls were lined with intricately woven fabrics with and torches covered in glass. Two sides of the room had low stools that sat only inches above the ground covered by cushions made of the same intricately woven fabric.At the far end, there was a slightly elevated dais with four chairs covered in elaborate carvings and a large gilded throne. The throne was made for someone much larger than the average person. Link glanced at Ganondorf. His face was smoothed into a mask of cool indifference.

Some women where already seated on cushions near the wall as the group slowly trickled in, having anticipated the meeting. Others that had greeted Link and the others outside slowly took their seats. Some younger warriors in brightly patterned clothing sat down on cushions near the door. Link was unsurprised as the elderly warrior took the seat directly to the right of the throne. He wasn't expecting Nabooru to take the seat to her right, but he did remember that she had said she had been Ganondorf's right hand women before he became evil. Koume and Kotake took the two seats directly to the left. Ganondorf stepped forward into the middle of the room, but did not take his seat on the throne. Link was left standing awkwardly near the door, keenly aware of the guards at his back.

Link couldn't understand the woman when she started talking, but she was obviously unimpressed, "Ganondorf-ti," she began.

"Ah!" Kotake interrupted her, "We have a guest. It would be rude to not include him in our conversation."

The old warrior's eyebrow twitched. In Hylian, she ground out, "Our 'guest' is a large part of the reason we are in this mess and, as I was about to tell our king, I would like to know why he is here and what happened in the Lost Woods." She spoke like a coiled snake seconds away from lashing out with poison fangs. At that moment, Link wanted to run and never look back, but he knew it wouldn't do any good. Instead, he stood very, very still. She avoided looking at him, but still said, "Besides that, if you insist on including him, it would be easiest if you simply translate."

The twins exchanged a look. As one, they held their hands out and starting muttering. A small, blue and orange sphere formed in front of them, pulsing softly. Kotake pushed the ball over to Link with a flick of her wrists and he barely restrained himself from taking a step back as it stopped about a foot in front of him.

"Now," said Koume, "This should make it so that we can all understand you and you can understand us. If you can understand me now, nod." Link nodded. She was no longer speaking Hylian, but the sphere translated as she spoke. It was like what Navi and Tatl had done, but, at the same time, it wasn't. Navi's translation was smooth and natural. The voice coming from the sphere jerked and jumped at odd times in a sentence, sometimes using the wrong structure completely.

The old warrior cleared her throat, "Now that that's out of the way," she aimed a razor-edged look towards Ganondorf, "I believe we are owed an explanation."

Ganondorf looked decidedly uncomfortable and he stood silent for a few long seconds before he spoke. "Esteemed Elder," he began, rolling his shoulders back, "I have been doing everything in my power to ensure the success of our people. This has included some," he paused, groping for the right word, "actions and plans that certain people have found... offensive."

Nabooru snorted at that, and the old woman glared her. Nabooru rolled her eyes and Link could only wonder what their relationship was.

Ganondorf pretended not to notice and continued, "The Hyrulean King believes I am a threat to his country and, without proper evidence or authority, condemned for crimes that he believed I may commit based on the word of two children, one of which claims to have traveled through time." He paused and swallowed almost imperceptibly, "Due to the fact that the child claiming to be a time traveler and," he glanced at Link, "barely speaks Hylian, there was a misunderstanding about what had and hadn't happened yet. He took issue with that and brought it upon himself take me to his own people, the Kokiri, to have a trial on what he believed already happened. I was not found guilty, but," he outright glared at Link this time, "the Kokiri also believe that I am a threat and sent him to watch me."

A murmur swept around the room. Link couldn't read Koume or Kotake's facial expressions, but the elderly warrior raised an eyebrow. When the murmuring quieted, she turned to Link, "And what do you have to say about all of this?"

Link blinked. What was that supposed to mean? She must have seen the confusion on his face because she clarified, "Why are you here?"

Link lifted his chin and looked her in the eyes, "In the future, Ganondorf stealed the triforce. The world was evil and he was evil." Link struggled for words as he thought about that mornings trial; had it really only been that morning? "The Great Deku Tree is dead now. Ganondorf did not murder, but made deal with Gohma. The Gohma was the direct killer," Link paused again, "Still bad, but cannot eat him. If he wasKokiri, he will only be allowed in village. He is not Kokiri. He cannot stay in Lost Woods, so I will make sure he is not dangerous."

The woman's eyebrow remained raised and she looked at Ganondorf and said something in Gerudo. She looked back to Link and slowly asked, "When you say eat, do mean execute?"

Link struggled again. So much had happened that day. It was getting near impossible to string the foreign words together, but he didn't trust the sphere to understand Kokiri. He took a few breaths before he said, "There is no difference. If there are bones, the person can be a stalfos. There must not be bones."

Link started to panic as the words seemed to hang in the air. Kotake was the first to break the silence, "I thought as much," she solemnly explained, "The Kokiri are not mortal. Those who break their laws are punished swiftly and without mercy. While we were there, a Hylian knight struck a skullkid with an iron dagger. He was dragged into the bushes by moblins and I can guess what happened next. The entire forest operates by those laws. The Kokiri are no exception."

The old women pointed her chin at Link, "And the boy?"

Kotake hesitated, but Nabooru raised her chin as she looked at Link, "He was raised in those woods, but he's Hylian. The Kokiri can't leave the forest. He can."

The warrior pulled at her long, silver hair. "It seems we have much to much to discuss." The room around her started to bubble with voices, but she raised a hand to silence them. "First, however, our guest cannot remain here for our council. No matter his connection to the forest children, he is not Gerudo and," he eyes softened a little and a ghost of a smile crossed her lips, "it seems he is, in fact a mortal child who has had a very long day. I think it would be a very good idea for him to get something to."

Koume cackled as Link was led out of the chamber, "You always did have a soft spot for children Artji!"

"Shut it! We still have your son to deal with you witch!"

Link glanced over his shoulder once more and barely caught sight of Ganondorf, still standing in the middle of the chamber, pinching his nose. Then, the door closed and the guards led away. The sphere than had been translating for him faded into nothing.

* * *

The guards talked quietly as they led Link down several winding corridors. He couldn't understand them, but he couldn't quite bring himself to care. Nothing else made sense, why should the language? Instead, he focused on figuring out where he was going. Link vaguely recognized the halls and rooms from his previous, or perhaps future, adventures in the fortress. Things were different now, though.

Instead of a stark tan, the walls were covered in beautiful patterns. Most of it was painted directly onto the wall, but dazzling tapestries were hung intermittently. The skull decorations hanging above the doors were still there, but they had live plants growing around them instead of the scraggly weeds Link had seen. It was disorienting walking through a place so familiar and yet so different. Link had a lot of experience with that feeling. At least this time only parts of the world were wrong and he stayed the right size.

Link was pulled out his thoughts as they came to a wide doorway covered by a cloth. One of the guards looked down at him and patted him on the shoulder. She smiled softly, "Pinzusto, ra in ash." The words meant nothing to Link, but it sounded like an apology. He swallowed.

One of the guards swept aside the curtains and a wave of noise and light hit Link hard. Before them was a hall big enough to fit half the Castle Town square. There were several windows letting in the last of the sunset, but the room was bright with the light coming from the huge fire in the fireplace. A giant metal pot sat on top of it and small loaves of bread sat in grooves carved into its sies. Meat roasted on a small grill placed directly in front. Rows of herbs hung on ropes hung several feet above it all, close enough to catch some of the dry air, but not close enough to cook. The whole arrangement took up and entire wall.

Rows of tables and benches filled the room. Gerudo of all ages were sprinkled throughout, chatting and snacking. Children sat in one corner, playing hand games with string. In another, off duty warriors examined a cracked sword. A middle-aged woman with a long nose and a stern demeanor seemed to have dominion over the pot, shooing children and warriors alike. The inherent din of a room full of people was overwhelming.

It all stopped when one of the guards next to Link banged the end of her spear on the floor twice. All eyes turned to them and Link wanted to run back to his little tree house more than anything else in the world. Instead, the guard to his left led Link to a table and made him sit. The Gerudo continued to watch him.

The silence stretched as the Gerudo stared at Link and Link stared back in frozen terror. One of the guards coughed into her hand, "Magst, kak e-ena."

The woman stirring the pot nodded, got a bowl down from the cabinet, and filled it with a watery soup. She never took her eyes off Link. He sat rigidly as she walked over, silently willing her to just set the bowl down and walk away. She didn't. She loomed over him with her arms crossed, daring him try something.

Link shook as he picked up the spoon. Silverware, or woodware in this case, was still a foreign concept to him. As he picked the bowl up and started to eat, the woman snorted and made a comment to the guards. Link had no clue what she was saying, but it didn't sound kind. He shook harder, but tried to just concentrate on eating. There was the scraping sound of a wooden chair being moved on stone floor. Link spilled the steaming soup all over his lap.

The guards and the woman starting speaking quickly and loudly at him and more chairs scraped over stone. Link heart pounded in his ears as his eyes darted around the room. There was a guard by the door behind him, so he couldn't run that way, but other Gerudo were blocking his path around the table. If he tried to jump over it, that would give them more time to block the other door.

The Gerudo who had given him the soup reached a hand out towards him and Link panicked. Forgetting his exit strategies, he vaulted over the table and made a run for the far door. A Gerudo woman stood in front of it, hands out like she was trying to calm a skittish horse. Link swerved to the right, but found he was running straight into a corner. He pivoted and turned to face the small crowd of Gerudo surrounding him. They murmured softly to each other, some looking almost as panicked as Link. Others were taking small steps towards him, crouching low with their hands out in front of them. Link drew his sword. All movement stopped.

The room filled with tension and one of the Gerudo swore quietly. A woman who had been inching towards Link crouched lower and put her hands on her knees. "Bi zhen, eso insha mus," she said slowly and softly, "Pas tatsu, heviji, bi hastis."

Link couldn't understand her. All he knew was that he was surrounded by Gerudo. He remembered the sting of the swords against his skin when he was freeing the carpenters and the terror of sneaking through the pirate's fortress to rescue the Zora eggs. He took another step back and hit the wall. The Gerudo muttered under her breath. Still, looking at him, she turned her head slightly toward the other Gerudo and softly, but urgently asked, "Hairulniv, gazh gay?"

There was silence, before a girl spoke up from near the back of the crowd, "Noona das, es fakar."

The woman in front of Link nodded slightly. "Prila chuka, bi sakt."

The girl rushed out of the room and the woman turned her full attention back to Link. He was still shaking and holding his sword in front of him. His teeth were bared and his irises were nearly imperceptable around his dialated pupils. The woman kept speaking softly to him, but he couldn't understand her. That scared him almost as much as the people surrounding him.

After a few minutes the girl returned flushed and dragging another Gerudo girl. The new gril was speaking rapidly to the one dragging her in. Her eyes were wide. The other girl pointed at Link. Link flinched.

The woman in front of Link gestured for the new girl to come closer. She did so warily and squatted down next to the other women. The woman said something to her and she nodded. She looked at Link's sword as she calmly said, "Hello, little one, I am Noona. Milish sits next to me."

Link lowered his sword an inch, but kept a fighting stance. Noona looked to the woman on her right. She gestured at Link with her head. Noona breathed out slowly as she looked back at Link. "What is your name?" she asked quietly.

Link glared at her. His heart was still pounding in his ears, but, without the overwhelming noise and the people crowding in on him, he was starting to calm down. Hylian was still too hard, but he could manage his name. "Link," he ground out. His accent was heavy and it sounded more like a rain drop hitting the ground than a true word.

Noona blinked before giving a gentle smile. Link saw teeth and brought his sword back up. The other Gerudo in the room tensed and edged back, but simply Noona put her hands up in a placating gesture. Once her smile dropped, so did Link's sword. She and Milish whispered back and forth for a few seconds. Link looked between them suspiciously, but didn't bring his sword back up.

"Link," Noona started again, "You are safe here. We will not hurt you."

Link shook his head vigourously. He opened his mouth and found that he didn't know the words for what he wanted to say. Ganondorf was still king here. He couldn't trust the Gerudo to be good. He wasn't safe as long as Ganondorf was alive. He opened and closed his mouth a few more times. Noona nodded encouragingly, as did Milish. Link glanced between them a few times before setting his stance and slowly forcing out, "Ganondorf here, cannot trust."

Noona nodded slowly before speaking softly in Gerudo to Milish. The Gerudo in the room started murmuring, but quieted quickly when they saw Link starting to raise his sword.

Link watched carefully as Noona and Milish exchanged looks. Noona sat all the way down on the floor and Milish said something to the women behind her. They started to back slowly out of the room.

Noona waited until it was only her, Link, Milish, and a few guards before speaking again. "Ganondorf is our king," she said carefully, "but we are not him. The elders do not like what he did. You can trust us, but not trust him."

Link glared as he tried to decipher what she was saying. Hylian was still hard and Noona's accent was thick, but he was starting to get what she was saying. "Can make your mind bad," he said, thinking of what happened to Nabooru in the future.

Noona nodded, "The king has strong magic. He can do many things. But do I seem like my mind is bad?"

Link looked at her, really looked at her. She was young. That was obvious. She couldn't have been more than seventeen or eighteen. Her clothes were white like the ones the horseback archery master and the training grounds guard had. She didn't have a sword or a jewel on her head. Link cautiously shook his head; she didn't look brainwashed.

Noona nodded, "That means you can trust me, right?"

Link shook his head. She might not be brainwashed, but that didn't mean she was good. "Can still be evil," he muttered, though he didn't really believe it.

She sighed and said something to Milish before speaking to Link again, "I promise I am good. Will you trust me just a little?"

Link looked at her again. She didn't seem bad, and, even if she was, she didn't seem strong. If he needed to he could run or fight. He hesitantly nodded.

She gave him a closed mouth smile as she nodded back. "I'm glad. Now, you have hot soup all over you and must be very tired. Please put down the sword and we will go to the healer."

Link pointedly sheathed his sword. Noona looked uncomfortable, "I meant that you should put the sword on the ground."

Link shook his head, "I keep my sword. Will still go with you."

Noona looked frantically at Milish who shrugged. Noona gave a strained half-smile, "Okay, let us go to the healer then."

Link nodded. Everyone in the room seemed to breath a sigh of relief. Link found himself being quickly led down several hallways by the guards and Noona. This time, they arrived in a much smaller room with 3 three low beds and two small, high windows. An elderly Gerudo woman with gray hair was hunched over a workbench grinding herbs.

One of the guards cleared her throat and the old woman looked up. She glanced a Link before speaking sharply to the guards. The guard put up her hands and replied like she was trying to diffuse an argument before it happened.

The old woman rolled her eyes and marched over to Link. Link stepped back ready to bolt. Noona rested a hand on his shoulder. He jumped and tensed before he could convince himself to relax.

"Easy little one," Noona said, "Healer Alma is just going to take a look at you and make sure you aren't hurt. That soup was very hot."

Link looked down at himself to see the cooling soup saturating his tunic. He didn't feel hurt, but the wet fabric was starting to get uncomfortable. The healer said something to Noona and she nodded.

"The healer would like you to sit on the bed and remove your tunic."

Link eyed the healer warily. She was a stern old woman with gray hair held up in a ponytail and wrinkled skin. Her golden eyes weren't particularly kind, but they weren't cruel either. She seemed more strict than anything else, really. She crossed her arms and pointed to the bed and Link decided to trust her for the moment.

She clicked her tongue as Link sat down and made a gesture like she was pulling up her tunic. Link glared, but still started undoing his belts. As he took off his sword, he made a point to keep it near to his left hand.

The healer grumbled as she examined him, constantly making what sounded like very pointed comments and questions toward Noona and the guards. There was a lot of general shuffling of feet and looking away as they answered. The more answers she got and the more she looked at Link, the deeper her scowl became. Link couldn't understand why, there weren't any burn marks from the soup and most of his scars had been erased by time travel. After what seemed like years, she turned to Noona and crossed her arms. Whatever she said she did not sound pleased. Noona flinched.

She cautiously turned to Link and said, "Our healer says that you should spend the night in the infirmary. She is worried about what happened in the kitchen."

"I am fine. No burns," Link grumbled.

Noona had a vaguely uncomfortable expression, but still looked Link in the eye as she explained, "Burns are not the problem. Your, ah," she fumbled for a word for a few seconds before continuing, "reaction was not normal. She wants to ask questions, but thinks it would be good if you ate and slept first."

Link's scowl deepened, "I am good. Need to know what happens to Ganondorf."

Noona nodded solemnly, "I am sure you are good, but our healer still worries and the council will continue until very late. She will feel better if you eat and stay here. I will tell you the outcome in the morning or you can talk to the elders yourself."

Link wanted to argue, but he was feeling tired and he didn't like what happened earlier either. Now that he had calmed down, he was realizing how much of an overreaction he it had been. Not only that, but he had felt out of control, which was a horrible way to be. So, reluctantly, he agreed to Noona's request.

Noona smiled and the guards brought him another bowl of soup that he didn't spill. The healer grumbled when he wouldn't let her take his sword or pack away, but seemed pleased that he hadn't fought his stay in the infirmary. After a warm cup of tea provided by Healer Alma, Link let himself sleep.

* * *

She groused to Noona as Link slipped into his new clothes. The pants were like most Gerudo pants, billowing and light, but, instead of a bandeau, he had been given a thin tunic. Noona explained that it was to help prevent sunburn. Link was just glad that it made it so he belt and sword sling wouldn't chafe.

Link woke early the next morning. Noona was nowhere in sight, but the healer was already up and back at her workbench. She scowled when she saw Link awake and trying to get out of bed. Link was rather pleased that he couldn't understand the obvious scolding. He was starting to put his sword and bags back on before he realized that he was only wearing shorts. When he went to grab his tunic from its place on the healers table, she deftly picked it up and put it on one of the high shelves, safely out of his reach.

He scowled as she made them both steaming cups of tea with goats milk and a variety of spices. By the time Noona entered with three pieces of flat bread, Link was starting to get restless and Healer Alma was starting to get annoyed with him. She scolding him holding a bowl of herbs in one hand and waving her grinding stick at Link with the other. Link sat mostly naked on the bed, petulantly swinging feet. Noona laughed at the sight. The old healer grumbled at her, but snatched the offered flat bread anyway.

"Good morning," Noona said to Link as she handed him his breakfast, "The council would like to talk to you, but I believe Healer Alma will do so first."

"Talk to council now," Link grouched before taking a bite out of his flatbread. It surprisingly sweet.

Noona nodded, "The council is very important, but even they respect the wisdom of Healer Alma. And," he eyes twinkled, "you have no clothes."

Link pointed to the shelf he couldn't reach. "My tunic is there."

The healer seemed to guess what Link had said because she snapped something through her mouthful of flatbread.

Noona laughed, "It seems that you cannot have your tunic until it is washed. We will get you something else to wear in the meantime."

Link felt a rush of irrational anger. That was his tunic. All Kokiri wore one like it. How dare they try and take it away? "No," Link shouted, "It's mine!"

Noona took a step back and put her hands out in front of her, looking flustered. She and the healer exchanged some quick words before she turned back to Link. "Of course it is yours," she said gently, "It is just covered in dried soup. It would be better to wear something clean to meet the elders."

Link fumed for a few more seconds before he started to see the logic. It was dirty and people were weird about that sometimes. They weren't trying to take it, just clean it. He hung his head and nodded, embarrassed by his outburst.

Noona smiled, "Good, I'll ask someone to get some clean clothes and we can talk to Healer Alma for a bit."

After that, it was another round of questions, much like the ones the healer in Hyrule Castle asked. He was about 10, but he wasn't quite sure. He didn't know his parents. He was raised in the Lost Woods by the Kokiri. He didn't know how to read. Then, she started asking questions the Hylian healer hadn't asked. She wanted to know how long he had been adventuring and who he had been with. It depended on how one measured time and with Navi or Tatl or by himself. She asked how often he ate and slept when he was traveling. He ate when he had the chance and slept when he had time. She was very interested if incidents like the night before happened often. No. With each answer her frown deepened. By the time Link's new clothes arrived her usually grumpy countenance was an outright glower.

She groused to Noona as Link slipped into his new clothes. The pants were like most Gerudo pants, billowing and light, but, instead of a bandeau, he had been given a thin tunic. Noona explained that it was to help prevent sunburn. Link was just glad that it made it so he belt and sword sling wouldn't chafe.

They walked down the hall toward the same council room Link had been in the day before. Now that he wasn't quite so overwhelmed, he recognized much more of the fortress. Despite the decorated walls, the layout was still the same. That knowledge made him feel a little better, but his uneasy mood didn't leave him.

When they arrived at the council room, it was much the same as the night before. Most of the members were already there. Some looked well-rested and ready to start, but many looked more than a little rumbled. Kotake, Koume, Nabooru, and Artji, the old soldier, were all in the same spots they were yesterday. Link didn't notice any of this. Instead, his attention was fixed on the golden throne, or, more specifically, who was sitting on it.

In the center of the dais, Ganondorf sat leaning over a piece of flatbread. He looked better than he had the day before. His stay in the Kokiri Forest hadn't left him weak or injured like his stay in the Hyrule Castle dungeons had, but his imprisonment had still taken a toll on his appearance. Now, he once again looked like royalty. He once again had a bright citrine on his forehead, the orange fuzz that had started to grow in its place completely gone. Instead of his leather armor, he wore flowing robes with dazzling embroidery. He turned sharply to cast a scathing glare towards Link. Link tensed and started to reach for his sword. Noona put a hand on his shoulder before he could.

"Easy, little one," she said, "Our king will not hurt you now. The council will not allow it."

Link didn't exactly trust that the Gerudo King could be disallowed from doing anything except by force, but he nodded all the same. He didn't want to make a fuss, especially not after yesterday.

As the missing council members entered the chamber, the twins drew up the same translation orb as the day before. With its appearance, Noona bowed and left. A young woman in pink clothes and a veil led him to a cushion by the door where she urged him to sit down. The woman around him muttered to each other, but Link ignored them. He straightened his back and glared at Ganondorf. He would not be intimidated b the room or the women or the king himself. He would remain strong. An incident like the one yesterday was something he could afford.

The meeting began with a sigh and a resigned woman standing near the dais reciting, "Our gratitude to the Goddess of the Sands, who no mortal may sway. May she judge us kindly. Our respect to King Ganondorf, the Lion of the Sun. May his reign bring us honor."

Link frowned at that, but he noticed that most of the council members did too. Some rested their hands over their faces, others rolled their eyes. Ganondorf looked sat stock still and looked straight ahead, his flatbread hidden in one of his sleeves.

Artji, sitting to his right, rolled her shoulders. "Right," she said, "As those of you who stayed for our entire meeting last night know," she cast an accusing gaze at a few council members, "We have many decisions to make today." She looked less put together than she had the day before. There were a few hairs out of place in her ponytail previously flawless ponytail, her makeup was ever so slightly smeared, and the scowl on her face seemed fixed. She nursed a large cup of black tea as she spoke.

"Our 'guest', as our honored priestesses have so politely put it, is here to observe on behalf of the Kokiri and answer questions that we may still have about the events leading to this meeting. Does the council have any objections on this matter?" A few of the council members grumbled and shifted, but none of them spoke up. Link supposed they must have talked about it the previous night.

The woman took another long drink of her tea, "Good, now then, our first order of business is to decide how we deal with our king's transgressions. Yesterday, we decided he would not be banished. There was a suggestion that he be restricted to the fortress. What is the voice of the council?"

One by one, the woman around the room stood. They raised various points and objections, but there was a general agreement on the matter. One woman seemed to sum up the argument in that "We'll lose any alliances we have left if we don't do something, but we're not going to be able to go to Castle Town for 'boyfriends' anytime soon." Link didn't get it, but it made the Gerudo around him laugh and nod in agreement. Even Koume and Kotake cackled their approval. Ganondorf's only response was to slump down and put his head in his hands.

"Good, it seems we've reached a decision. Now, onto other business. The Lion of the Sun," and she spat out the title like she was reminding Ganondorf of all the expectations he had failed to uphold, "took it upon himself to and obtain the gems to unlock the triforce." She ran her hand down her face as she said this. Link recognized the look she had as the one adults' wore when they didn't want to deal with what was happening. He saw it a lot in Termina.

She straightened and continued, "We need to take stop any further damage. While we had no relations with the Kokiri, we do have alliances with the other races of Hyrule," she turned to Link, "We know there are problems with the Zora and Gorons. Tell us how to stop this before we make any more enemies."

Link glowered, "You will not steal spiritual stones."

Koume scoffed from her seat on the dais, "Of course not boy, our stupid son has made too many mistakes already. Any chance of getting the triforce is lost. Stealing the gems would just cause more problems." Ganondorf kept his head in his hands.

Link nodded slowly, but the scowl didn't leave his face, "If I tell you, you will help me."

Most of the chamber looked confused. They murmured to each other before Nabooru spoke up, "Help you what?"

Link's scowl deepened, "Help me save Gorons and Zora.

Artji waved her hand, "Bah! This is our problem. We will take care of it."

Link's eyebrows shot up, but bunching up on his forehead again, "No, I need to save them. It is my job."

The old warrior met Links glare. Kotake and Koume broke the tension by starting to cackle. "Let the boy be the hero, Artji! If you tell him not to, he's stubborn enough that he'll do it anyway!" she smiled with a twinkle in her eye , "He's as bad as you when you were a girl!"

To Link's surprise, the old warrior started laughing along with the twins. "Fine. Fine," she said to Link, "You can come along if you behave, but we need to know what the problems are so we can fix them."

Link nodded carefully, not liking the word "behave". He told them anyway.

"The Goron mines have too many Dodongos, Jabu Jabu has a parasite... and Ganondorf wants to kidnap the princess."

"Hah!" one of the Gerudo councilwomen shouted, "A good old-fashioned kidnapping and ransom! Now that's a plan that works. Why try and threaten a tree when you have a tried and true plan right there?!"

Ganondorf groaned, "The triforce grants wishes. I want a permanent solution, not a political prisoner."

The council erupted into small squabbling arguments over the merits of kidnapping and Linked wondered if it was bad that he was working with these people. The noise stopped when Artji clapped her hands.

"Enough!" she said, "We can talk about what could have or should have been done later. Right now we have to fix what we can as fast as we can," she looked at Link, "Is it possible to fix the problems our stupid king has caused?" Link nodded fiercely and Artji nodded back. "Good, ready a messenger to set up a meeting with the Gorons. We leave for Death Mountain in within the week."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a warning, this fanfic is going to be long. I'm estimating twelve chapters, but I also estimated this chapter would be about 3000 words, so we'll see how that works out. Since I have a full time job I do take my time between updates, but I'm going to try for two to three weeks. 
> 
> Constructive criticism is welcome. Comments give me life. 
> 
> Translations (I tried my best):  
> Pinzusto, ra in ash. : This is loud.  
> Magst, kak e-ena. : He needs food.  
> Bi zhen, eso insha mus. : We will not hurt you.  
> Pas tatsu, heviji, bi hastis. : Put down the sword.  
> Hairulniv, gazh gay? : Who speaks Hylian?  
> Noona da, es fakar. : I think Noona does.  
> Prila chuka, bi sakt. : Go get her.
> 
> If you want to know more about my lore, I'll be posting it sporadically on my tumblr @armed-with-knitting-needles. I will also likely be posting an appendix when I finish this.


	2. Royalty Dismissed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my amazing beta: fandomauspistice!

Zelda stared out into the vast expanse of her father's throne room, face smoothed into a mask of regality. She was the princess. She was wise and strong. She knew that the good of the country came before her own childish needs. That didn't make the scene before her any easier to handle.

Impa had taken a knee a respectable twenty feet from the throne, well away from the dais. Usually, she would have been allowed all the way to the steps if she was presenting herself. She would have been a shadow behind Zelda if she were not. Twenty feet was a safe distance for a commoner. Impa wasn't a commoner, but she had come bearing horrible news.

The king gripped the armrests on his throne tightly and his face was a fierce shade of red. If it weren't for the seriousness of the situation, Zelda would have been snickering at how much he looked like an overripe tomato. Instead, she sat silently beside him as he fumed.

"I want to make sure that I'm understanding this correctly," he ground out, "Not only did these forest children murder my cousin, they set the Gerudo coward free and sent their little traitor with them. Is that correct?"

Impa remained still. To most, the king included, she looked the picture of calm solemnity. Only Zelda knew her well enough to see the stretched skin of her hand, the subtle twitch of a muscle on her temple, the way her nostrils flared ever so slightly. To the court, she looked perfectly put together, though Zelda could see that she was just as angry as her father.

Impa looked at the space between the king's feet. "There are some important details missing, but yes. Your cousin is dead and the Gerudo King has gone back to his people. The Kokiri have sent Link with him as a guardian of sorts."

The king fumed quietly for a few seconds before responding through gritted teeth, "Why didn't you stop them? You were there the entire time. Why didn't you do anything?!"

"My deepest apologies, my king. I did everything I could to get myself and my men out of that forest alive," she paused, "The Kokiri are not mortal. They do not think like we do and I could not predict their actions."

"You could not predict their actions," his face softened slightly before twisting into a savage snarl, "After all, who could predict that they would kill poor Nicodemis while letting treasonous scum walk free. What logic could there possibly be in that? They gave the Gerudo scum a trial, why not my cousin."

Zelda knew that her father wasn't truly asking Impa a question at this point, but simply letting out his anger. She knew Impa knew that, too, but she was in a precarious position. If she ignored the king's questions it could seem like disrespect, but if she answered them it might only make him angrier. Impa remained as calm and collected as ever, balancing on a tightrope while looking like she was standing comfortably on solid stone.

She let the king simmer in his fury for a few long seconds before carefully answering, "The Kokiri did not kill your cousin. Moblins pulled him through a bush after he injured a skull kid that was trying to steal from him. The forest itself reacted immediately to what it saw as a crime," she hesitated before continuing, "I believe the fact that the Gerudo King hadn't been torn to pieces by a moblin or a stalfos is what granted him a trial. The forest deals swift punishment, but he wasn't dead. It made the Kokiri suspicious."

Zelda blanched and gripped the armrests of her own miniature throne tightly. She couldn't control her outburst. "Uncle Nicodemis was ripped apart by moblins!?" she shouted, horrified.

Both Impa and the king winced. Zelda frowned. They apparently hadn't wanted her to know that detail. She didn't like that.

"My dear," the king began, but Impa cut him off, drawing gasps from the court.

"Yes," she said, looking Zelda in the eye, "It pulled him into the bushes and we all could guess what happened next. We were lucky Link was able to stop us from intervening or we would all be dead."

Zelda nodded. Impa was blunt about giving her information and she always gave her the information she asked for. The king's eyes nearly bugged out of his head and his face turned red again.

"Are you telling me that traitorous boy stopped you from saving a member of the royal family."

Impa looked the king in the eye, "No, he stopped us from getting ourselves killed. If we had attacked that moblin, the forest itself would have ripped us apart. He grew up there and he was as scared as the rest of us. The Lost Woods do not take prisoners and he knows it well."

The king drummed his fingers on the arm of his throne, but did not speak. Tension hung in the throne room like men from the gallows. After a few minutes of this, Impa spoke again.

"The Lost Woods are not a place for mortal laws or sensibilities. I believe that if the Kokiri had found the Gerudo King guilty, they would have eaten him to erase his existence from this world. We are lucky Lord Nicodemis did not meet that fate."

The king's eyes bugged again and he addressed Impa in a hoarse whisper, "They would do that to a person."

Impa nodded, "They are not mortal. They do not see the world as we do."

The king hesitated slightly. "Would the boy have joined them?"

Impa looked at uncomfortable and Zelda sent a quick prayer to the Golden Triad that she would say no. She was furious at Link, but she didn't want to hear such a horrible thing. It would mean he could never be forgiven.

Impa finally spoke after a few tense seconds, "I do not believe so. While he sees himself as part of the forest, he is still mortal and the Kokiri have sheltered him," she shuddered almost imperceptibly, "However, his upbringing has affected him. I watched him snatch a bird out of the sky and eat it raw. He would need to learn to be a Hylian."

The king nodded slowly and his eyes hardened. Zelda held her breath. He was about to make a judgement and Zelda suspected it would not be kind.

"The news you bring is grave indeed," he said, his voice clear and bold for the whole throne room to hear, "It is clear that the Kokiri and the Lost Woods are dangerous, but we must consider the Gerudo. With their king back, they are a threat to the safety of Hyrule and must be dealt with. I am afraid we are at war," he paused, letting the assembled court murmur among themselves, "We will begin preparations at once." He looked down at Zelda and she held her breath. In a softer, but still clear voice he said, "It is clear the boy has been affected by his evil upbringing. We will try and bring him back to the light if it is possible, but we cannot let him go unpunished."

Zelda nodded. She didn't want Link to go unpunished. What he did was bad and she couldn't see how he thought differently. While he had saved Hyrule in another time, it was obvious that he was deeply affected by the dangerous magic of the Lost Woods. But, she thought, he had done good and he didn't want to be bad. It might be possible to make him good again... if they could get him away from the Gerudo before they corrupted him even more.

She was pulled out of her thoughts as the king spoke once more, this time to Impa, "Impa, you have served the royal family in many ways. While your service as my daughter's nursemaid has been invaluable, it seems we need your talents elsewhere. We will discuss this later."

The crowd murmured. They had all known the rumors surrounding the Sheikah. Zelda knew that her father was making a point. Using the skills of a Sheikah warrior showed how serious the situation was. Zelda still wanted to cry and protest that she didn't want Impa to leave. Instead, she remained silent and composed, as a princess should.

Impa didn't protest either. She looked at the steps below the throne and, in a loud and clear voice, proclaimed, "Yes, my king."

The king rose and the court rose with him. "This court is adjourned," he declared, "Spread the word that we are at war. It is time we dealt with the Gerudo menace." With that, he swept out of the throne room, Zelda following close behind. The whole room bowed at their exit.

As they made their way through the corridors the king looked down at Zelda fondly, "I know that you are sad that Impa won't be serving as your nursemaid any more, but do not fret. You will have handmaidens now to tend to you. You have outgrown the need for a nursemaid anyhow."

Zelda nodded, her chin high and back straight. She disagreed, Impa was far more than her nursemaid, she was a teacher and a protector as well. She didn't dare say that to her father. His word was law and while she could get away with objections and protests much of the time, she knew that this time she couldn't. She only hoped her new handmaids would be companions she could trust and who would help with her plans.

* * *

Zelda met her new handmaids the next morning. There were two of them. They were both willowy girls of medium height. One was 16 and was the second daughter of the Duke of Necluda, who resided on the shores of Lake Hylia. She had kind brown eyes, and a warm smile. The other was the first daughter of the Duke of Tabantha, directly to the west of Castletown, where much of Hyrule’s wheat was grown. She had blonde hair and blue eyes, much like Zelda's own. She looked much more worried than the other girl, but Zelda supposed that made sense. Tabantha was much closer to the Gerudo Valley. They were practically on the front lines, but then again, so was Necluda. The river running from the canyon ran directly into the lake, leaving it open for attack.

Zelda was drawn from her thoughts as the two girls curtsied. "Greetings Your Highness," they said in unison.

"I am Estella," said the first, the one from Necluda.

"And I am Aglaia," said the one from Tabantha.

"It is our pleasure to serve you, Your Highness," they said once again in unison.

Zelda frowned. Impa never called her "Your Highness". Zelda wasn't sure she liked it, but said nothing about it. That was not what a princess was supposed to do.

Instead she kept her back straight and her chin held high. "Hello," she said, in the most regal fashion she could manage, "It is very good to meet you."

The girls in front of her curtsied again, obviously waiting for something. Zelda had no clue what. Impa hadn't done anything like this at all. They stood there awkwardly. Zelda though they looked a little like soldiers waiting for orders.

With that in mind, she said, "At ease."

The girls giggled and Zelda blushed. It wasn't her fault she didn't know what to say.

"We aren't soldiers, Your Highness," Estella said, still giggling,"Just tell us, what you would like to do and we shall do it with you."

"We've been instructed to teach you about courtly manners and what you will need to know as you get closer to needing to find a husband," said Aglaia, and her eyes twinkled, "but that doesn't mean we can't have some fun."

Estella nodded, "Perhaps we could start with some embroidery."

Zelda frowned. This was not what she was expecting. If she were with Impa, they would be discussing the war and what it would mean for Hyrule. Impa would be helping come up with strategies and understanding what she would need to do if she were queen. Zelda didn't get it. The country was preparing for war and these girls wanted to talk about embroidery? Even when their provinces were so close to the Gerudo region? They must have been joking!

Zelda did not think war was a matter worth joking about, so she frowned and crossed her arms as she said, "I think it would be best if we helped prepare for the war. We can help plan the supply routes and begin preparations for the prayer services with Rauru. You two come from provinces near the Gerudo, so you should be able to help with the best routes."

The two handmaids glanced at each other and smiled nervously. "Your Highness," Aglaia began, "That is not our place. We don't have the... experience," she paused, "And you are... well... " She trailed off glancing desperately towards Estella. Estella nodded and crouched down in front of Zelda.

"Your Highness, you are a princess. Leave the preparations to the king and his advisers," she paused, glancing at Aglaia, "Perhaps helping... beseech the goddesses may a better use of your time," she brightened a little, "We can talk about it as we embroider."

Zelda frowned. That wasn't what she wanted to hear. Impa would have never told her not to prepare. And what did Aglaia mean that she was a princess? Of course she was, that's why she needed to help prepare. She had a duty to lead the people of Hyrule. She was already twelve, practically an adult. It would be less than a decade before she became queen, she was sure of it. She looked at Estella and Aglaia, scowling slightly. They were clearly uncomfortable with the topic. She sighed. Perhaps they had never been taught what it meant to be a leader.

Deciding to compromise she said, "It will be good to talk about how I can offer spiritual support during these troubling times," the girls relaxed slightly, but Zelda continued, "Though instead of embroidering, we will watch the preparations in the courtyard. It will be a boost to the moral of our soldiers." It would also be good for satisfying Zelda's curiosity, she thought privately.

Zelda's new handmaidens glanced quickly desperately at each other. Aglaia opened her mouth to say something, but Zelda was already gliding out the door with all the grace and confidence of a divine messenger.

* * *

The next few days consisted mostly of Zelda doing her best to help prepare for the war and her new handmaidens stopping her whenever they could. She wanted to inspect the weaponry. They suggested embroidering sashes for the knights instead. She wanted to figure out the logistics for rations. They turned her towards studying how to plan a court feast. She wanted to be a direct influence. They wanted her to stay behind the scenes. Zelda was getting very tired of it.

The one thing they were able to agree on, not that her two demure ladies in waiting would ever dream of disagreeing with her, was her involvement with spiritual support for the army. They were always perfectly willing to ferry her to the Temple of Time to talk to Rauru or accompany her to the library for books on the goddess. In fact, after a few days of desperately trying to head off anything else she tried to do, they actively encouraged it, even bring up their own suggestions.

That was what Aglaia was doing now. "Your Highness," she pleaded, "I have found more books on protection prayers. Why don't we read through those?"

Zelda just glared at her, hands on her hips and her foot tapping against the cool marble floor. It echoed through the hallways like the ticking of an impatient clock. Aglaia glanced desperately at Estella.

Estella smiled thinly. Zelda rolled her eyes. She had already figured out Estella was horrible at hiding her emotions.

Despite the obvious disapproval from the princess, Estella suggested, in an almost watery voice, "We can even go and consult Father Rauru about the best way to administer the prayers after we finish reading. I'm sure he has plenty of good suggestions."

Zelda didn't even grace that with a response. She simply turned on her heel and started marching down the halls. Any platoon leader would be proud of her form. Her handmaids hurried after her, hands gripping their skirts.

"Your Highness, please!" begged Aglaia, "There are so many other things we can do and still be of great help."

Zelda simply walked on, pretending neither of the girls were there. Aglaia looked at Estella, but she only smiled with watery eyes. Aglaia set her shoulders.

"Please, Your Highness, His Majesty will be very angry."

"No," Zelda said, with all the confidence of a stubborn twelve-year-old, "My father will want me there."

"Your Highness," Aglaia tried again, a whine seeping into her voice, "You are a princess."

"Yes. Exactly."

Estella did her best to widen her watery smile. She failed miserably. "What Aglaia means," Estella began, "is that a council of-"

Zelda spun to face her, her eyes full of fire. "I know exactly what she means," she snapped, "I know exactly what both of you mean and you're wrong! My father will want me there! I will be queen someday. I must know what a war meeting is like before I have to hold one."

Both Estella and Aglaia looked ready to protest, but they had already arrived in front of the chamber. Before either could get a word in, Zelda swung the door open and walked into her council chamber.

King Aiolis Straton's council chamber was a work of art. Tapestries lined the walls in vibrant colors, each depicting a famous battle in Hyrule's history. Zelda remembered counting the thousands of knights as a child. She always got bored before she finished. Between the tapestries were bookshelves filled with books on the history of wars long past, and how Hyrule eventually won. Her father never let her read the ones on the higher selves. Windows high on the wall gave the room enough light to see during the day without torches, but didn't invite the prying eyes of stain-glass windows more common in the king's meeting room. Zelda knew there were still plenty of ways to peak in if someone really wanted to. However, the most striking part of the room was the ornate table in the center.

The table was ancient. No one could remember how long it had been in that room or where it had come from originally, but everyone knew it was old. It was made of a solid wood that not even the kingdom's chief botanist knew and carved with patterns that had never worn down. Most said it was magic.

At that moment, it had a map of Hyrule laid over the top of it. The detail was exquisite, with everything down to streams and brooks painted in and labeled. Each of Hyrule's regions was outlined in black and it's towns were little white dots. Zelda approved of the contrast, as it made it easy to read.

There were also people in the room. Zelda recognized them all. They were her father's most trusted advisers and generals. Each had supported him fervently during the Hyrulean Civil War, or were the children of those who had. They were the ones who ensured that he was king and remained so. Zelda had known all of them since she was a child. Now, they were looking at her with expressions ranging from confusion to anger. All conversation had stopped the minute she walked in.

Zelda just rolled her eyes. They should know why she was here. She glided across the room with the grace of a swan and the determination of a soldier. She had been taught the former, her teachers had always been exasperated at the latter. She took a seat to the right of the empty informal throne her father used in meetings, effectively displacing General Froji. She grinned at him, very effectively communicating that yes, she had just done that.

He stepped forward with a scowl and his finger raised, but whatever he was about to say was cut off by the entrance of the king. They all rose, bowing low. Zelda made sure to keep one hand on her stolen seat.

The king looked startled when he saw her. She smiled at him. He must have thought that he would have to send for her, after all she hadn't actually been told about the meeting. She had overheard that a meeting was to take place when she was once again visiting the library at her handmaids’ insistence. Her confidence slipped a little as his expression became tinted with annoyance. She felt marginally better when it shifted again into fond exasperation.

"Zelda," he began.

"Yes, Father?"

"What are you doing here, dear?"

Zelda frowned a little, wasn't it obvious? "I'm here for the council of war."

The room itself seemed to groan and the King of Hyrule ran a hand down his face. Zelda's frown started to become a pout, but she quickly smoothed her face into a more regal expression. She was royalty after all and this was serious business.

"Dear," the king began. He took a breath, but then paused, looking at Zelda. Whatever he saw made him sigh, "I see. You may observe. Please be quiet, though. This is very serious and I doubt we will require your input."

Zelda scowled, but quickly cleared her face at her father's raised eyebrow. She nodded. This wasn't what she was expecting, but she supposed that she had a lot to learn. It was her first war meeting after all. All these men already had plenty of experience.

The meeting started without ceremony. It surprised Zelda a little. Most anything her father did required lots of bowing and archaic language. They started with laying out the situation. Most of it Zelda already knew. Link had taken Ganondorf to a trial in the Lost Woods even after Hyrule had already declared him guilty. The Kokiri disagreed and set him free. Now he was free again in the Gerudo Desert and Link was there with him. She had already suspected that they were declaring war on the Gerudo as soon as they arrested Ganondorf, but it was nice to hear it confirmed. From there, the meeting quickly moved on into strategies and tension mounted quickly,

Some of the generals favored attacking the Gerudo directly, taking them out before they could prepare themselves. They reasoned it would take far less time for Hyrule to bolster an army than it would for the Gerudo. Other generals pointed out that the Gerudo raiding parties could already be considered a standing army. They believed it would be far better to starve them out. One of her father's closest advisors thought that they should wait until they had organized with the Gorons and the Zora. He wanted to make sure all of the conditions in their treaty would be upheld.

Zelda hung onto every word. This is what she wanted to be a part of, not embroidering stupid sashes. Each strategy had clear pros and cons and Zelda mulled each of them, thinking about what she would do. She wanted to state her opinions, too. After all, she was the princess.

As the meeting progressed, every so often she would catch her father looking over at her. His brow was furrowed. That was never a good sign, but Zelda didn't pay it much mind. After all, the country was at war, of course he would be worried.

It was an hour and a half into the meeting when a Sheikah appeared in the room. Some of the generals and advisers jumped. They hadn't knocked or even visibly entered. Zelda just nodded towards the Shekiah who was eyeing her suspiciously.

The king cleared his throat, "Do you have news?"

The Sheikah bowed, "Yes, my King, we have received word that the Gerudo have sent out messengers to both the Gorons and the Zora. We were unable to apprehend either."

Zelda could see her father turning red and winced. He never made good decisions when he was angry. He tended to be more than a little impulsive. Zelda had read enough history to know that impulsiveness was never a good thing during a war.

To make sure her father didn't do anything he would regret she asked, "Have they started their return trip to the Gerudo yet?"

The Sheikah raised their eyebrows, but didn't comment on Zelda being the one to ask the question. They simply answered, "No, Your Highness, and we do not think they will. They most likely have enchanted items that allow them to communicate without travelling."

Zelda nodded slowly. The Sheikah had similar means of communications. Zelda had seen Impa speak into a pendant hidden in her armour plenty of times. "It would still be a good idea to keep guards on the most likely routes, just in case."

The Sheikah nodded, "I will see to it."

"No you will not!" the King roared, "I will not have you following the orders of my twelve-year-old daughter! You take your orders from me!" His face had turned completely purple and he kept clenching and unclenching his fist. Zelda's eyes widened. She didn't understand.

"Father, what-"

"Quiet Zelda!" he shouted, and tears sprung to Zelda's eyes. Why in the world was he so angry. She was doing a good thing.

The King must have seen fear in Zelda's face because he took a deep breath and let his hand relax onto the table. "Zelda," be began, his voice firm, but much softer than before, "This is not the place for you to play spy. You are a princess, you shouldn't even be playing spy in the first place. You should be focusing on more feminine pursuits," he sighed, "If you absolutely must help with the war, focus on praying for Hyrule. It would do us all some good."

Zelda's fear faded and her face morphed into a pout. "You listened to me before!" she snapped, "You listened to me when I brought Link in!"

"Yes! And look where that got us!"

Zelda felt her face burn in shame and fury. She wanted to scream at him. She wanted to tell him that she was right. It didn't matter if Link did something bad. She was still right! But by the set of his brow, she knew he wouldn't listen.

She could feel the tears pricking at the corners of her eyes as she bolted out of the room, pushing aside her startled handmaidens. She could distantly hear her father call after her, but she didn't stop. She ran straight to her room and flung open the doors before promptly slamming them shut, knowing she wasn't the least bit "feminine" in doing so. She flung herself on her bed, hugging a pillow tightly.

At that moment, Zelda hated Link. She hated that he had freed Ganondorf. She hated that her prophecy hadn't had the chance to come true. She hated this stupid war and her father's stupid war council. She hated that he wasn't listening. She was right! She had made a good contribution! So what if it was her giving orders. She was right! Impa would've supported her, but Impa wasn't there. Zelda hugged her pillow a little tighter.

Two hours later, Zelda opened the door to let her handmaidens back into her chambers with puffy eyes. They cooed over her, telling her again and again that she could still help, she just needed to remember that she was a princess. Zelda sulked on her bed swinging her feet back and forth.

The next day, the King of Hyrule had a war meeting. Zelda locked her door and wouldn't let her handmaidens in. They tried talking her into coming out. They promised to take her to the library and to set up an appointment with Rauru and even to give her all the sweets she wanted. After two hours of no reply, Estella and Aglaia resigned themselves to a day of sitting outside the princess's door watching passersby give them pitying looks.

On a rafter, two secret doors, three forgotten hallways, and a pillar with good handholds away, Princess Zelda Hyrule sat watching her father's council. She couldn't hear them very well, perhaps an ear-trumpet would help, but she was there. She was still mad and confused and hurt, but at least she was there. Her father couldn't keep her away that easily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I told you there would be more of Zelda! I would also like to remind everyone that she is twelve and Link is ten. 
> 
> I'm afraid that I'm not really happy with the beginning scene of this chapter, but the show must go on and I'm not entirely sure how to fix it. Constructive criticism is encouraged. Questions too. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed reading.


	3. Rocky Relations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long. This chapter and the next aren't very exciting for me, so I've kinda been procrastinating on them. Hopefully, the next chapter won't take months. 
> 
> Thank you to my amazing beta fandomauspistice. 
> 
> For the Gerudo language I am using Va Eheniv made by Nina-Kristine Johnson. You can find her on tumblr @gerudoshikyapril.

It had been four days since the messenger left for Goron City. The Gerudo Council was having its fourth meeting in four days. Link was sitting in what was becoming his usual spot by the door, trying to understand the Hylian translation of Twinrova's orb. From what he could make out, the council was discussing the pros and cons of a defensive stance. Noona sat next to him. Officially this was so she could explain the proceedings so he wouldn't interrupt with questions, but he knew it was because they didn't trust him and they thought she could keep him calm. He wasn't sure what to think about that. Ganondorf was still present for these meetings, but had been unofficially been forbidden from speaking. He only glowered from his throne as the women talked. It made Link feel oddly smug.

That smugness quickly turned to alarm as a ball of foreign magic started to waver in the middle of the room. He started to reach for his bag and looked around the room for a possible source. He was surprised to see the lack of response from the Gerudo in the room. Couldn't they feel it?

The room itself seemed to jump as a Gerudo symbol started floating in the air along with the ball of magic. Only Koume, Kotake, and Ganondorf seemed unaffected. As the symbol appeared a voice faded in, "-lo? Hello? Can you hear me?"

Ganondorf opened his mouth to answer, but Artji, who had taken only a split second to recover, responded before he could speak, "The council hears you, messenger. What is the news?"

"I give my respect to the council. The Gorons have agreed to a meeting. They make no promises, but are willing to hear us."

Artji nodded, though the messenger couldn't see her, "Under the circumstances, that is all we can ask. What are their conditions?"

"We must send ranking council members so that all agreements are binding, however they will not welcome our king. We are free to bring swords since they cannot harm Gorons, but I suggest coming unarmed. We cannot use any magic within the city, however teleportation is allowed due to the danger in Hyrule."

Artji hesitated for a second, but Koume cackled, "All reasonable. Tell them we will be departing the morning of the day after next."

"Understood. I will prepare for your arrival. May the council be wise."

Link frowned as the council began making plans. He turned to Noona, "Why do we take so long to leave?"

Noona blinked, "It is late in the evening now and we are leaving in the morning the day after tomorrow. We only have a day to prepare as it is. How could we leave sooner."

Link's brow furrowed. He always left as soon as he got the information he needed, regardless of the time of day, though he supposed this needed more planning. That surely couldn't take a whole day, though, could it?

Noona laughed, "You are too easy to read! We have a delegation to plan. It is not so simple as leaving and we do not carry all our possessions on ourselves." She grinned and Link glared. "Be patient, you will see why taking time is important."

Link soon saw Noona's point. Link had been removed from the endless meetings about what to say and what gifts they could give on such short notice due to his sour attitude. He hadn't actually said anything, but they had gotten tired of his scowl. Noona had tried to set him to work packing, but since he didn't really understand the concept, he had only gotten in the way. After he asked why they used such big bags for all their stuff and then demonstrated how big his tiny one was by sticking his entire arm into it, Noona had given up and shooed him outside.

He had felt a little put out at being tossed out, but he hadn't really wanted to help pack anyway. Instead, he sat on the roof of the fortress swinging his feet as he watched the women bustling in the courtyard below. Most of them weren't actually preparing for the trip and instead just going about their daily lives. It was interesting. There were so many different jobs that had to be done. Some Gerudo were caring for horses. A woman hammered at a piece of metal at a forge. Children played. Link was particularly interested in the warriors training in the courtyard. They moved in sync, swinging their swords as one and flowing from one position to the next. It was rather like a dance.

He watched the courtyard well into the evening. He knew where Ganondorf was and figured that he wasn't going anywhere with the entire Gerudo Council watching him. Link didn't really trust any of them, they had kept Ganondorf as their king after all, but their interests were aligned. They certainly hadn't liked Ganondorf acting without their knowledge. It was amusing to Link how exasperated the demon king looked, sitting surrounded by decision making and not allowed to have a say.

He got up when Noona approached, dusting himself off. She laughed as Link turned to face her and Link blinked.

"It looks like the sun kissed you, Link."

Link frowned. Sometimes Noona made no sense. Of course the sun didn't kiss him. The sun was in the sky, it couldn't kiss anyone. Noona must have sensed his confusion because she laughed again and shook her head.

"Let's get you to bed. We have a big day tomorrow."

Link nodded and followed her back through the fortress to the infirmary. Healer Alma had insisted he stay there. It was annoying. She was constantly telling him to eat more or to be careful. It was tiring, but Link had nowhere else to sleep. His attempt to sleep on the roof had been immediately thwarted.

Healer Alma was predictably mixing herbs at her little table when they got back. She was always doing that it seemed. When she saw Link she immediately scowled and reached for a paste on a high shelf.

"Malak safkura," she grumbled giving Link a pointed look. Knowing he wouldn't understand her scolding she rolled her eyes and starting putting the poultice on Link's face. He hissed when it burned unexpectedly. Healer Alma huffed, but otherwise ignored his reaction.

Noona smiled, "That's what you get for sitting in the sun all day instead of helping us prepare." Link turned his scowl to her. She was the one who shooed him out of the fortress. Noona shook her head, "If you keep up that attitude, I won't give you your surprise."

Link tilted his head. He usually didn't like surprises, but her tone hinted that there wasn't going to be a monster jumping out at him. Noona's smile widened, but she made sure not to show her teeth. Link appreciated that. She reached into a bag and pulled out Link's Kokiri tunic.

Link couldn't help the grin as he reached out his hands to take the tunic from her. She quickly jerked it out of his reach and said, "Ah, ah, ah, what do we say?"

Link glared. Noona had been trying to teach him Gerudo and had also insisted on improving his manners. "Kitit," he said, keeping up his glare.

Noona laughed and dropped the tunic in Link's hands. He marveled at it. It was cleaner than he had ever seen it.

Noona's eyes sparkled. "You know," she said, "It took days to get all the stains and dirt out. I was afraid, we were going to have to throw it out."

Link clutched the tunic to his chest and vigorously shook his head. Noona ruffled his hair. "Get some rest. We are leaving early tomorrow. I do not want you any grumpier than usual."

She laughed at Link's pout as she left the room. Once she had left, Link slipped the tunic on before sliding into bed. He fell asleep to the sound of Healer Alma grinding herbs.

* * *

Before the sun rose the next morning Link stood with a group of Gerudo in the fortress courtyard. Despite Noona's prediction, he was not any grumpier than usual, though many of the Gerudo were. The delegation consisted of Nabooru, Koume, and five guards. The council had decided that even though Link was accompanying the delegation he was not part of it. Noona, as his "interpreter", was also not technically part of the delegation. Link didn't really understand why any of that was important, but he knew that Noona's job wasn't just to interpret for him.

The Gerudo assembled around a symbol drawn in the dirt the day before by Koume and Kotake. The formation of the group was carefully planned. Koume and Nabooru were in the front as the most senior members. The guards stood behind them in a tight formation; the swords at their sides were ceremonial and purely for show. Link and Noona stood to the left side of the group, in front of the guards, but behind Koume and Nabooru. The whole arrangement was another formality that Link didn't understand, and to Noona's dismay, didn't care to.

They opened the portal as the sun rose above the horizon. Unlike the portal from the lost woods, it was a grand affair big enough for mounted warriors to easily fit through. While the portal from the Lost Woods could only be seen as wavering air, this portal shone brightly at the edges, like a doorway of light.

"It announces our arrival," Noona whispered to Link, though he hadn’t asked a question, "The Gorons will know we are coming through and be able to prepare. To give them time we will wait a few minutes before going in."

Link nodded. Waiting when there was a job to do had never been his strong suit, but he supposed it was important in this case. Relations between nations seemed to be far more complicated than relations between people. Link wished he could have just gone and dealt with it himself.

After five minutes, the party began slowly through the portal, slipping through in their predetermined arrangement. As they emerged on the other side, Link could see a semi-circle of Gorons greeting them. They too looked carefully arranged, but unlike the Gerudo's arrangement of formality, it was a positioning of artificial nonchalance. The Gorons were clearly wary, Link could tell that much just from the tension in their rocky forms, but the way they stood seemed to insist that they were calm, if ready to welcome guests. It was a strange dance.

As the last of the guards emerged, the portal closed and the semi-circle of Gorons began to part. Darunia stepped through the crowd with his arms spread wide.

"Welcome!" he said with a smile that did not reach his eyes. "We were surprised to get your messenger. Let's talk more inside." As he turned around to lead them inside of Goron City, his eyes darted over the group, lingering on Link for an imperceptible moment before moving on.

They journeyed down to the heart of Goron City accompanied by an air of artificial welcome. The normally enthusiastic and friendly Gorons watched their every move. They were mostly silent, only exchanging glances every so often. Link knew that this was because Gorons were very bad at whispering and being quiet in general. Everything they said tended to come out in a shout. Their silence spoke volumes.

At the lowest level Darunia led Link, Noona, Koume, and Nabooru into his room. The door closed, shutting out both prying ears and the guards. He turned to face the delegation, "We all know why you're here. You want that spiritual stone, don't you? Same as your king."

Nabooru and Koume exchanged glances. Link knew that they were usually at odds, but they seemed to be agreeing on something at least. "Our king acted without the permission of the council," Nabooru stated, crossing her arms, "We are trying to undo any damage his actions have caused."

Darunia crossed his arms and stared back. "He may have acted without your permission, but you haven't kicked him out yet. That means you support him."

Koume tried next. "Our king is the only man among out people. We cannot get rid of him so easily."

Darunia harrumphed. Link looked between them. This was going nowhere. It was just more of that ceremony. Why couldn't they just get on with it so he could clear out the mines and undo the damage?

Link crossed his arms and scowled, watching the back and forth between the Gerudo and the Gorons. He had a job to do and they were just wasting time. He had been warned not to speak unless spoken to, though, and he had promised, reluctantly, not to. He couldn't break a promise and he needed that armband if he wanted in the Dodongo Caverns.

As he glowered at the flickering torches, Link began to realize something. In Termina he had gotten items and gone back to use them the next cycle. It was how he saved as many people as he had the final cycle. He still had those items, which meant he had bombs. And besides that, he was stronger now. In Termina, he had discovered that he could lift the bombs growing on the floor.

He glanced at the delegation. Nabooru was trying to carefully explain to a very grumpy Darunia that they just wanted to try and keep old alliances. Link winced as he realized he hadn't played Saria's song to soothe Darunia’s anger. He wasn't going to do it now. They were distracted. All he had to do was slip out and deal with the dodongos now. That meant he wouldn't have to take anybody along when he cleared the caves. It would be much easier that way.

Looking to make sure that everyone was still distracted, Link eased himself slowly out of the room. He drew the attention of a few curious Gorons as he made his way out of the city and onto the cliffside where the bomb flower was growing. The Goron beside it was eyeing him warily.

He was about to pick up the flower when he heard a voice call out behind him. "Link!" it shouted, and Link turned to see Noona running towards him. He rolled his eyes. Of course she would notice. It was her job to "keep him out of trouble" after all.

Before she could reach him, Link picked the bomb flower and threw it over the edge of the cliff, causing both Noona and the Goron beside it to jump. Then he jumped over himself, rolling as he hit the ground. He headed into the cave, ignoring Noona's increasingly frantic yelling.

Link felt the heat of the mines as he entered. They were just as he remembered them: big and full of bomb flowers. He blew up the layer of rocks blocking the entrance to the main cavern and drew his sword as he walked through the opening. He wanted to get this done as quickly as possible.

He looked around the cavern, trying to find possible shortcuts. Shortly after he had realized that he no longer needed the Goron Bracelet, he realized that he had items now that he didn't have the first time around. He already had bombs, so he didn't need to go out of his way to collect those at least. He also knew his way around, so he didn't need the map or compass.

The problem was lighting up the eyes on the giant dead dodongo. He had what he needed to do it, but he had to get up there first. Link flinched remembering the burns all along his arm the first time he went through the caverns when he didn't get away from a dead dodongo quickly enough. That wasn't something he wanted to repeat. He didn't want to repeat any of it really.

He squared his shoulders, he would do what he needed to. It was his job to undo Ganondorf's wrongdoings. He had already failed in killing the man, he couldn't fail in anything else; not if he wanted to stop the catastrophe he had lived through before.

With a clenched jaw, Link made his way into the center of the cavern. He bombed the beamos on his way and ignored the keese. They were a nuisance, but nothing more. He sighed as he made his way to the east side of the cavern and bombed the entrance he needed to go through. He just wanted to get this over with.

Making his way through the mines was much easier than he remembered it being. He had barely gotten burned at all and the baby dodongos at least went down with a swing of his sword. The lizalfos were annoying as ever, dodging this way and that, but barely a challenge. It actually startled Link how quickly they died. He nudged one with his foot to make sure it was actually dead before moving on.

At the door, he paused and went back to dump the lizalfos bodies in the lava, just to be sure they wouldn't bother him again.

Link felt the same surprise at how easily the adult dodongos went down. Surely it couldn't be that easy. The ones in Termina certainly weren't, but then again, he did have a better sword now. He decided that must have been it and moved on. He had other things to worry about.

Getting through the rest of the cavern was just as easy as the first bit. When he got to the first bridge he considered just hookshotting across, but couldn't see a good enough handhold. The last thing he wanted was to fall into the lava. He had come close before and had been barely revived by a fairy. He wouldn't risk it again, not when the other way was fine.

He quickly made his way through the other rooms, focusing on gritting his teeth and getting through as quickly as possible. When he defeated the second set of lizalfos he pushed those off the platforms and into the lava as well. He hated those things.

He was getting impatient by the time he was finally able to drop bombs into the eyes of the giant dead dodongo. He wanted this done before the negotiations finished. From the circles they had been going in earlier, Link doubted they would be done anytime soon, but that didn't mean anything. He had been gone almost two hours by his best estimate, which, after Termina, was very, very good. He wanted this done.

He dropped lithely onto the top of the skull and then slid to the ground. He was almost done. Killing King Dodongo wasn't going to be easy, but it would be done soon. They couldn't do much once the big lizard was dead. The Gorons would be safe and that was what mattered, not the stupid games everyone was playing.

It was a simple task getting through the last few rooms of the mines. He was at least able to brace himself this time as he plummeted after blowing up the floor. He remembered the horrible, jarring shock the last time he had fell. It was only a little better this time around and Link reeled slightly as the Dodongo King roared.

Link took out the fairy sword he had gotten in Termina. He couldn't use a shield while wielding it, but shields weren't very effective against fire breathing lizards. All they did was scorch the arm connected, as whatever wasn't covered was scoured by flames. He made sure the bomb pouch was easily accessible with one hand. He had no desire to be constantly putting his sword down in order to lob a bomb like last time.

King Dodongo roared and Link braced himself. The massive beast slammed into the wall as Link jumped out of the way, grimacing. He could feel the room shake from the impact. King Dodongo turned towards Link, prepared to spew a fireball. Link felt himself be pulled towards the gaping maw of the beast as he lobbed a bomb. He gritted his teeth as King Dodongo fell to the ground.

Link attacked with all his might, hacking away at its rock-hard carapace. On only the third blow, Link heard a resounding crack. To his astonishment, the massive beasts armor was already starting to give. That had taken far, far longer last time. Link's shock lasted just long enough for King Dodongo to stagger to his feet. Link fell back quickly, annoyed at his mistake.

King Dodongo limped sideways once before curling up into a ball. It bellowed as it hit the wall, clearly hurt. That was a good sign. It chased Link for more times than he would have liked and he got frustrated, wishing the stupid lizard would just open its mouth. King Dodongo was wary of the bombs at Links side, but getting more enraged by the second.

When it finally grew angry enough to try a fireball again, all Link could feel was relief. It swallowed the bomb and Link rushed at the crack he had made the first time it fell. He felt the skin crack again, but kept going. It was only the second blow when his sword reached something soft. King Dodongo roared in agony and Link jumped to get out of the way.

It flailed, wobbling as it tried to get to its feet and failing. It curled up and made to roll, but faltered. Instead of rolling toward Link, it lost its balance and fell into the lava. It shrieked and the entire cavern shook. Link's head throbbed with the sheer volume of it. Around it the lava cooled, hardening around King Dodongo as it died. Link put his sword away, stunned. If it hadn't been for the smothering heat, he would have barely broken a sweat.

He waited for a minute for the circle of glowing light to appear. It didn't. Link began to panic, looking for a way out and not seeing one in the sheer sides of the cavern. Looking up, he saw an outcropping he thought his hookshot just might reach. He could only thank the goddesses it held as he scrambled out of the pit.

* * *

As Link slowly started working his way back towards the entrance of the temple he heard an ear-splitting scream. His eyes widened. That wasn't a monster. He knew those screams well. No, this was a person. He hurriedly wrenched his sword out of its sheath as he ran towards the noise.

Link skidded into the main cavern of the mines, his eyes darted around wildly. He heard another scream and his eyes focused in on the flailing form across the room. It was Noona. If Link knew how to curse, he would have. He had completely forgotten about her. She had seen him run off. Of course she would try and do something.

He looked for the cause of her distress and almost rolled his eyes. There were a pair of fire keese dive-bombing her. He could deal with those in an instant. But, he considered, she couldn't. She wasn't armed and in the beginning, even for him, fire keese had been a menace.

Jumping from rock to rock, he unslung his bow. With two quick shots, he dispatched the keese. Noona kept screaming.

She kept screaming all the way up until Link walked up next to her and tapped her on the shoulder. Half a scream died in her throat and she opened her eyes. She blinked owlishly before her eyes narrowed as she saw Link staring up at her.

"You," she hissed, "How dare you!"

Link was nonplussed.

"Safkura! You ran off in the middle of negotiations and into the mines! You could have ruined everything! This could ruin everything!" her face twisted into a mask of horror as she considered the consequences of his actions.

Link shrugged, "You didn't get the others." She had taken a long time to just to the outer chamber. He wondered what took so long, but didn't ask.

"Of course not! What would Darunia say!? A child with the Gerudo contingency running into his mines uninvited! Do you know how bad that looks?"

Link was confused. How was that bad? Darunia had sent him there last time. He shrugged again. It didn't matter now. "King Dodongo is dead. Most of the others are, too."

Noona's mouth had been open in preparation for another tirade. It remained open in shock. "What?!"

"I killed King Dodongo. It is encased in lava."

Noona took a deep breath in pinched the bridge of her nose. She said something sharp in Gerudo before looking at Link again. "Okay, you took care of the problem without permission. We can deal with that," she breathed deeply again, "What proof do you have?"

Link tilted his head to the side. The mine was clear. What other proof did he need? "King Dodongo is dead. The mines are cleared."

Noona sighed. "Yes, but how do the Gorons know that. They blocked off the entire mine and refuse to go in. Why would they believe you, a ten year old kid, was able to take care of it?"

Link scowled. "I am not a liar. I am not evil. They believed me last time"

Noona grumbled, "Shak malakzi," then sighed. "You are not a liar, but the Gorons don't know that. You came with us and they do not trust we are not working without king. We must have proof."

Link's scowl deepened and turned on his heal. He stomped as he headed back down into the cave where he had defeated King Dodongo. Noona trailed behind him calling out for him to wait for her.

* * *

Almost an hour later Gorons stared as Link walked back down through Goron city. Noona trialed behind him looking defeated in burnt clothing. On his shoulder he carried the massive horn from King Dodongo's head. He had spent fifteen minutes hacking away at it before it had finally come free. Noona had said he needed proof. He figured this would be enough for anyone.

As he got closer to Darunia's room he could her the circular reasoning still going on inside. He rolled his eyes and wondered if they had made any progress in the hours he had been gone.

Nabooru was speaking as he walked in. "I know you don't have any reason to trust us, but we can help-"

She stopped and stared as Link walked in with Noona. The whole room stopped and stared. There was silence for a beat as the previously dignified assembly took in Link, with his prize proudly rested on his shoulder, and Noona silently apologizing beside him.

The bubble burst as Darunia broke the silence with a rumbling laugh. The Gerudo jumped, looking at each other in astonishment.

"Well," said Darunia, grinning widely, "I think the dodongo problem is solved!" he looked towards Nabooru, "Now what were you saying about help?"

Nabooru sighed looking between Link, with the giant horn he was holding, and Noona, who was looking a strange mixture of sheepish and angry. She paused for a few moments before saying, "It seems like you no longer need our help. We can only apologize for any actions our king may have taken." Koume nodded along, looking grim.

Darunia grinned at Link. "Thanks for taking care of that! I barely noticed you when you came in before, but you're really something!" His eyes narrowed momentarily before they widened. He took a step back and swung his arms as if to balance himself in exaggerated surprise. "You were the kid who accused Ganondorf in the first place. I was so angry I didn't even recognize you! Why are you here with the Gerudo, brother?"

Koume's and Nabooru's eyes widened at the casual use of the title. To call an outsider "brother" meant something.

Link shrugged and glared at the floor. "Ganondorf was only evil to the Great Deku Tree, yet. It is wrong to execute him for something he will do."

"Might do!" Koume snapped. She glanced at Darunia and amended "Definitely will not do."

Darunia ignored her and nodded sagely. "That is certainly an honorable way of looking at things," he raised his eyebrows as he looked down at Link, "but that doesn't explain why you're with the Gerudo."

Link looked into Darunia's eyes as he spoke, "I am making sure Ganondorf does not do evil. I need to watch him," he shrugged, "but I also need to fix things now. The Gerudo are helping me. They are not evil."

Darunia looked back and Link before nodding and turning to Nabooru, "You really don't want our ruby?"

Nabooru shook her head with more than a little frustration, "No! We've been telling you for hours we just want to undo any damage our stupid king has done! We don't want to lose you as our allies!"

Darunia nodded and sighed, "I'm still sworn brothers with the king. If it comes to a war, I am his ally first."

"We are hoping it will not come to a war."

Darunia shook his head and continued as if he hadn't heard, "Look, it seems like you really are just trying to do that right thing now, so I'll tell you what. If I can stay out of the war, I will. The Gerudo Desert is a long way away from Death Mountain. I won't send any warriors I don't have to."

Nabooru smiled and stuck out her hand, "That's all we can ask."

Darunia grabbed her hand, but instead of shaking it, he used it to pull her into a Goron hug. Her eyes bulged in her head, and Link winced.

Darunia let her go and turned to Link. Link's eyes widened, sensing his impending doom. To avoid his own Goron thanks, he presented King Dodongo's horn like a gift and ran, dragging Noona with him.

Darunia laughed.

Within hours, they were heading back to the Gerudo Fortress. As Darunia waved to them as they walked through the portal. Link waved to Darunia as he looked back. He was thrilled they were friends again. Perhaps things would be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:
> 
> Malak safkura - Little fool  
> Safkura - fool  
> Shak malakzi - crazy boy
> 
> Noona is getting very close to hitting her breaking point. She is used to looking over children, but not ones that jump over cliffs. Link is challenge. He's also ten and dealing with trauma. Not all of his thought processes are entirely rational at this point and his world view is a little skewed. The poor thing has a lot of growing to do. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed. Constructive criticism is encouraged and comments and kudos always make my day.


	4. Rough Waters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. I'm back! It's been six months, but here's another chapter! Thank you to my amazing beta   
> fandomauspistice! I also used Va Eheniv made by Nina-Kristine Johnson who is gerudoshikyapril on Tumblr.
> 
> In other news, I'm now a college graduate! Woo!

Link crossed his arms. He was seated on the end of the infirmary bed that was quickly becoming his. Healer Alma grumbled as she treated his burns from the Goron mines. They weren't bad, he'd barely noticed them, but Healer Alma was fussing.

Noona was no help. She leaned against the door of the infirmary staring him down with narrowed eyes. She hadn't changed clothes yet and the ones that she had worn as part of the delegation were singed in places. She seemed more than a little pissed off about that. 

Link hissed a little as Healer Alma rubbed a poultice over a burn that was starting to blister. She whacked him on the head and grumbled, "Safkurali malakzi! Fakarsu, bi kénchut kaf?"

Noona rolled her eyes, " Kak, danzha, bi ash müs." She glared at Link. "What you did was foolish. You could have ruined negotiations."

It was Link's turn to roll his eyes. "I killed King Dodongo. Durania happy. Problem solved."

"It's not that simple. I... You..." Noona ran a hand down her face, "Look, I spent days making this outfit. It's ruined. You can see that, right?"

Link nodded, but didn't see where she was going with this. It wasn't his fault she decided to follow him.

Noona continued, "Every stitch in my outfit, I did by hand. There was no magic involved. It took hundreds of hours to make and only an hour to completely ruin it."

Link frowned. It was just a dress. Then he remembered how he reacted to the idea of his own clothes being thrown out. He was starting to feel a little bad.

Noona looked slightly chagrined. "My dress outfit is no longer wearable because the fabric is gone in certain places. Each piece of the shirt and the pants holds other pieces together. Destroying certain pieces, like a piece of fabric on the knee, can be darned and look mostly the same. Other pieces," she gestured to where the entire left of her shirt was burnt off, embroidery threads hanging loosely in singed disarray, "are much harder to fix."

Link nodded. He was sorry that she ruined her shirt, but she really just shouldn't have followed him in. She obviously wasn't trained like he was.

Noona looked him in the eye, "A delegation is like an intricately woven outfit-" Wait, what? - "Each piece is chosen and stitched together carefully. When you ran off, you tore off a piece of the fabric. We were lucky Chief Durania did not take offence to your killing King Dodongo without permission and we were able to patch the hole," she narrowed her eyes, "Next time we might not be so lucky."

Link frowned. That... that kind of made sense, if you could think of one thing as another. He still didn't think what he did was wrong, but seeing Noona's charred outfit still made him feel bad. He slowly nodded.

Noona stared at him for a few seconds more before speaking again, "The council received word from the emissary in Zora's Domain while we were gone. They have elected to take you with them, but," Noona leaned down so she was inches from Link's face, "you have to be on your best behavior."

Link frowned. He was always on his best behavior.

"That means no speaking out of turn, no running off, and if you’re going to do something crazy, for the mercy of the goddesses, tell someone and listen to them when they tell you not to."

Link nodded slowly. "I understand," he said, carefully avoiding making any promises while still trying to appease Noona.

Noona had to get patched up herself before heading towards the council room with Link. She clicked her tongue at the state of her clothes and put on much simpler ones.

"At least if these get destroyed I won't mind so much," she muttered, not quite to Link, but still in Hylian.

When they got to the council room, discussions were already underway about how to approach the Zora. They hadn't wanted to let the Gerudo teleport in, but had agreed to let them teleport directly outside the domain, but wouldn't let Koume or Kotake in since they were Ganondorf's mothers. There was the same fussing about gifts and attitudes and manners as with the Gorons.

Link frowned. He was feeling bitter about Noona's clothing metaphor and figured it was only a matter of time before he was thrown out again for scowling too much. He supposed it wasn't too bad since he didn't actually want to be there and Ganondorf seemed to be under control.

Near midday, Link miraculously hadn't been kicked out yet. The council was discussing negotiation strategies, most of which made little sense to him. There seemed to be a lot of meaningless platitudes thrown in with actual offers of help... And, they were only talking about the parasite investing Jabu Jabu. There was nothing about Ruto at all.

Link considered this silently. Had he mentioned Ruto when he told his story? He didn't really like thinking about her. She confused him and half of the things she said were about him. She was also really bossy and his arms hurt after he carried her around like that for so long. He thought marriage was what Kafei and Anju did when they got their masks, but he wasn't entirely sure. He didn't know what that had to do with Ruto and him.

He rolled his shoulders. No matter how confusing she was, Ruto was the key to getting to Jabu Jabu. "We need rescue Ruto," he said, sneaking his words in between two bickering councilwomen.

The whole room looked at him and Link's ears turned pink. Before anyone could ask questions he continued, "We need message from Ruto to get to Jabu Jabu."

Artji, whom he had finally learned was in charge of all Gerudo military and raiding operations, raised an eyebrow. "And what does the young Zora princess have to do with this mess," she asked calmly.

Link struggled to find words. He had a hard time figuring out how to talk about what had already happened to him, but not in this timeline. Eventually he settled on "When I helped before I grew up, but after I left the forest, Ruto was swallowed by Jabu Jabu."

There was muttering around him and Link sat up straighter. That wasn't a good sign. "Link," Artji said calmly, "What do you mean by swallowed?"

"She is inside of Jabu Jabu."

Artji nodded. "And do know for certain that it happened in this timeline?"

Link considered this. He didn't know. A lot of things had changed. But, if Ruto had been swallowed, he had to save her. She was the Sage of Water after all. Link shook his head.

Artji nodded again. "If you don't know for certain, we can't do anything. We will have to simply speak with the Zora King and find out if Ruto is missing. If she is, we will ask to search Jabu Jabu."

Link hesitated. They took so long to do things here, and there was no guarantee that the Zora King would believe them. The Gorons hadn't at first. Ruto's message was the proof they needed and that was in Lake Hylia. If she had been swallowed the note would be there. He could use the Zora's mask to get to it, but he felt so wrong using it. A Zora scale would work just as well, but he didn't have one of those anymore... But the Fisherman had one! At least he did in the future. Link could get that.

Mind made up, Link declared, "I will go to Lake Hylia to check."

Artji's eyebrows jumped, as did those of the rest of the assembled Gerudo, "Lake Hylia is a long ways away, boy. We will be leaving long before you could get there and back."

Link considered this, too. It didn't take long at all to get to Lake Hylia, especially not with the ocarina. From there he could simply swim through the tunnel to Zora's domain.

"When do you leave?" he asked.

"Tomorrow morning."

Link nodded. That was plenty of time. "I will meet you there."

With that he got up and took out his ocarina and began to play the Serenade of Water. There was a lot of shouting, but he ignored it. The music was far more important. As the last notes died he faded away and Noona grabbed his arm.

* * *

Link winced as they materialized on the shrine of Lake Hylia. Noona's grip felt like a vice around his wrist and she was screaming. Link didn't like screaming. It always meant something was going to hurt him soon. Noona turned to him looking furious.

"What did you do?" she asked, her eyebrow twitching with anger.

Link reeled back. He knew that she would probably be a little upset, but nothing on this scale. He squared his shoulders then shrugged. Her anger was her problem. She was far too weak to hurt him.

"Need Ruto's message. We traveled to Lake Hylia. I will get the zora scale from the fisherman. Then I will get the bottle from the bottom of the lake and we will swim to Zora's Domain through there," he pointed to the hole in the lake bed, "It is easy and will be proof."

Noon ran a hand down her face before looking at Link with defeat in her eyes. "Fine," she said, "You need the Zora scale to get the message?"

Link started to nod, then stopped. He couldn't lie, not even about this. "Could use Zora mask," he explained while looking at his feet, "but it feels wrong."

"Zora's mask?"

"It turns me into a Zora that looks like Mikau," he made a face, "It feels bad, though."

Noona had a funny look on her face when Link looked up, but she only sighed and nodded. "Okay, where do we get this Zora scale?"

Link pointed toward the fishing game on the other side of the lake and Noona's eyes widened.

"Link," she hissed, "I am Gerudo. We are very nearly at war with Hyrule. I will get killed if the guards catch me."

Link shrugged. That sounded like her problem. She shouldn't have tagged along. Except, it kind of was his problem. He was as much responsible for her as she was for him. He sighed. "Wear this," he said digging the stone mask out of his bag, "No one will see you without an eye of truth."

Noona took it cautiously, carefully turning it over in her hands. She put it on and looked over the edge of the platform to see her reflection. She yelped and Link heard a thud. She must have tripped over herself. Link laughed.

"Come on," he said and started walking off without looking back. It wouldn't matter anyway. He couldn't see her.

Together they made their way past the docks and the observatory. Link waved to the Zora he saw looking in the lake and they had a broken conversation about Ruto's whereabouts.

Walking around the lake only took a couple of hours, but Link still was anxious about time. He knew the Gerudo weren't leaving until the next morning and it was only early afternoon, but the feeling of time running out was something he couldn't shake. He wasn't sure how he was actually going to win the fishing game this time since the fish probably weren't big enough yet.

Behind him, he heard Noona whispering. He couldn't understand her, but it didn't sound like cursing, so he assumed that she had a communication stone like the ones the ambassadors had. It would certainly make coordinating easier.

When they reached the fishing hut, Link put a finger to his mouth urging Noona to be quiet. He wasn't sure if she had realized that she could be heard.

As he headed inside an idea struck him. He still wasn't sure if the fish would be big enough to win him a prize yet, especially with the limited time he had, but he had quite a few rupees. In Termina, he had put almost 5,000 in the bank, but his wallet only held 500 rupees. Thankfully, when he had told the banker that he was leaving he had suggested a different bag, that wasn't actually a wallet, the he could put in his equipment pouch. It worked and he only had to spend a thousand rupees on it. He still had almost 4,000 rupees with him. That meant he might be able to just buy the Zora scale.

The fisherman had a smile on his face when he greeted Link. Link remembered that that was supposed to be a good thing here and smiled back. The fisherman's own smile faltered a little, but he rehearsed the same dialogue from when Link was there last time.

Link smiled and mostly ignored him. "I need golden Zora scale," he told the fisherman.

The fisherman's smile faltered again. "Well, you have to beat the high score by at least 4 pounds to get that pretty trinket. I'm not sure if the fish are big enough for it yet, though."

Link frowned, but didn't say anything more. Instead, he reached into his pouch and put a golden rupee on the counter.

The fisherman's eyes widened, but he quickly schooled his face, "Sorry, son," he said, "Rules are rules, you have to win the game to get the Zora scale."

Link slid another two gold rupees across the counter.

The fisherman's eyes bulged and he looked like he was having a harder time refusing, "Look, kid, I really appreciate that this is important to you, but -"

He stopped as Link slid another three gold rupees across the counter, smiling the feral that Saria used when she wasn't getting her way.

The fisherman swallowed before he correct, "I mean, since its so important to you, I think you should have it." He reached under the counter and gave the scale to Link. "I look forward to doing business with you again!"

Link nodded without breaking eye contact. "Thank you!" he said, and turned and walked out the door.

The fisherman starred as the door stayed open an extra few seconds before closing after the boy.

* * *

Link and Noona spent the night sitting by a fire on the shore of Lake Hylia. The spoke little and ate only the fish that Link caught and Noona insisted on cooking. They slept soundly and woke in the early hours of the dawn.

The bottle with Ruto's message was right where Link remembered it, which was both a relief and not great. On one hand, he could get to Jabu Jabu more quickly. On the other, he had to get Ruto out of Jabu Jabu again. He wasn't looking forward to it.

Noona spent the morning coordinating with the rest of the delegation through her communicator while Link erased the signs of their camp. He knew that no one was looking for them and a lone campfire wasn't any cause for suspicion. He covered it up anyway.

Noona turned to him as the last traces of their existence at Lake Hylia vanished. "We're going to meet up with the delegation just after they arrive in the main hall. You said that travel from Lake Hylia to Zora's Domain is instantaneous, correct?"

Link nodded, barely stopping an eye roll. They'd been over this.

"And you're sure that your Zora scale can get us both through the passage?"

Link nodded again. They had tested this.

Noona breathed out slowly then nodded. "Okay, the guards have been warned that we're coming from Lake Hylia, so they won't attack us, but we still have to be cautious. You understand that, right?"

Link didn't contain his eye roll that time, but he still nodded.

Noona gave him a look. "Okay, and what does being cautious mean?"

Link looked back at her incredulously. Her gaze didn't waver. Link glared back and said, "Stay with the group unless given permission, only give information when asked, make negotiations easier, not harder."

Noona looked at him for a few more seconds before nodding and turning to look toward the lake. "Good, now, we will wait until we are called and pray nothing goes horribly wrong."

They sat and watched the sun slowly make its way across the sky until mid-morning, when Noona's communicator chimed. She stood up and dusted herself off.

"It's time," she said. Link nodded and grabbed her hand as they headed into Lake Hylia. There were Zora swimming near the entrance of the tunnel. They eyed Link and Noona warily, but made no move to stop them. Link ignored them. He didn't have time to chat, not like last time.

As planned, they emerged in Zora's Domain as the rest of the Gerudo delegation made its way into the central cavern. The Zora did not look at them as they joined the others. Link thought it curious. Noona had said that they would be highly suspicious of them entering from a relatively unknown passage. He guessed she was wrong.

Artji and Nabooru led this delegation, with Artji gracefully taking the lead. As Link matched his pace with her, she glared down at him.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" she asked.

Link nodded.

She nodded back before suddenly hitting the back of his head. "That was incredibly foolish," she hissed, "You were lucky Noona had a communicator or we would have sent warriors down to find you. We would have had to delay our visit. Do you know what you could have cost us?"

Link nodded petulantly as he rubbed the back of his head. He had told them where he was going and that he would meet them at the domain. It wasn't his fault they would have wasted their time.

Nabooru leveled a glare at him as she seemed to sense his thoughts. She glanced at the throne room they were rapidly approaching and warned, "We will talk about this later," before putting on a neutral expression.

As they approached the Zora King's throne the entire group knelt as Noona pulled Link down with them. The Zora King lethargically waved for them to stand.

It was Artji who addressed him. "Honored king," she began, "We come before you to beseech you. Our own king has been greedy and done much wrong. We believe your guardian god, Lord Jabu Jabu, is infected with a parasite. With your permission, we would like to make reparations by removing this parasite."

There was murmuring around the hall and the Zora King leaned forward, seeming to think. Nabooru stepped to Artji's side, pulling Link to stand in front of her.

"Link, who has been aiding us in our quest to repair the damage of our king, found a bottle that he believes is from Princess Ruto in Lake Hylia. We would like to offer this as well."

The murmuring increased and the king leaned down to pluck the bottle out of Link's hands. He gently uncorked the bottle and pulled the message from inside. Link watched the king's eyes widen as he read the message. He was pale when he finished and the room waited in a tense hush.

"That letter was certainly from my daughter," he said in a whisper, "It said that she is inside Lord Jabu Jabu, but that is not possible. Lord Jabu Jabu would never eat my dear Princess Ruto," he paused, "but he has been a little green around the gills lately. If there was a parasite..." he trailed off before focusing in on Link and Nabooru, "You have permission to go rescue my daughter."

There was an outcry from the king's advisers and attendants, but the king had already begun slowly scooting over. Link made his way to the entrance to the lake. Nabooru followed him after bowing to the Zora King. She gestured to Noona to stay behind as Link scooped up a fish from a nearby puddle before walking through the mouth of the cave.

* * *

Link threw the fish into Jabu Jabu's mouth and Nabooru stared, awestruck behind him. Jabu Jabu was big, that was certainly true, and he suspected Nabooru was trying to figure out how Ruto could still be alive if she were eaten. Link grabbed Nabooru's hand as the giant fish opened its mouth. He wanted to make sure that they did not get separated when they were pulled in. Nabooru looked down at him sharply just as Link felt his feet leave the ground.

Half a minute later, Link picked himself up off Jabu Jabu's tongue. It was as slimy as he remembered and he grimaced. The smell wasn't going to be coming off of him any time soon. He could feel the tongue shift as Nabooru dragged herself to her feet. She looked down at her front covered with slime and made a noise of disgust that Link truly, truly understood. Unfortunately it would only get worse.

"Come on," Link said, as he started down Jabu Jabu's throat to where he knew Princess Ruto was. He paused to shoot the octorocks with his bow before grimacing as he looked at the switch on the roof of Jabu Jabu's mouth. He didn't particularly want to shoot it in case it hurt Jabu Jabu, but he didn't have his slingshot. He decided to try lobbing a deku nut at it instead. There was a blinding flash and the door opened. Link blinked in surprise. He hadn't expected that to work.

Behind him Nabooru groaned, "Warn me next time."

Link nodded in her direction and continued towards the door. The stench of Jabu Jabu only increased as Link and Nabooru made their way farther into his digestive tract. The squishiness of flesh following them like an inescapable reality. Link carefully avoided the biris scattered throughout and motioned for Nabooru to do the same. Though she had her spear out, Link didn't know what would happen if she struck one.

Ruto was waiting just where Link remembered, looking down at one of the fleshy holes. As Nabooru slid into the chamber behind Link, Ruto abruptly turned to them.

"You! Who are you!?" she asked.

Nabooru knelt and said, "I am Nabooru of the Gerudo and this is Link. We have been sent by your father to rescue you. The letter in the bottle you sent concerned him greatly."

"What!? 'Letter in a bottle?' I have no idea what your talking about!"

Nabooru shifted slightly. "Your father is very worried about you, Princess." Link rolled his eyes. He knew where this was going.

"I don't care!" Ruto shouted, "Anyway, I can't go home right now. And you... Get out of here! Understand?!"

Before Nabooru or Link could reply, Ruto turned and walked directly on top of one of the holes in Jabu Jabu's stomach. She screamed as she fell.

Nabooru shouted as she surged forward staring down into the mass of viscous flesh. Link just sighed and walked ahead so he could jump down after Ruto. As he started to fall, Nabooru grabbed his arm. Both their eyes widened as they tumbled down. They landed in a tangled heap of limbs as the floor below them made a sickening squelch.

Link groaned as he started to get untangled and get up. Nabooru groaned louder. A short distance behind them, Link heard a short "Hmph!"

Link quickly righted himself the rest of the way, accidentally throwing Nabooru back to the ground. He spun to face Ruto, face red and glaring. They were not doing this again. Link refused. Ruto didn't care.

"Are you still hanging around here? I told you to go away!"

"No," Link said, though it came out as more of a growl.

Ruto took a small step back before correcting and crossing her arms. "I'm okay," she said, her cheeks slightly flushed, "I've been going inside Lord Jabu-Jabu since I was little, but..." she paused, "Lord Jabu-Jabu is very strange today. There are electrified jellyfish and strange holes around. On top of that my precious stone was-" she abruptly cut herself off and glared at Link, "But that's none of your business! You go home now! Understand!"

Link looked at her incredulously. This felt even more bizarre than the first time around. They had fallen through a hole in the stomach of a giant fish. He had no way of just going home. He couldn't go home now anyway, not even if he wanted to.

"Princess," Nabooru, who had by now made her way to her feet, began, "Your father is very worried about you. Please let us take you home."

"Are you that worried about me? Then I will give you the honor of carrying me! However... I won't leave until I find the thing I'm looking for! You'd better believe me!"

Link nodded, but Nabooru just sort of stood there. Link waited for her to pick Ruto up. He didn't want to carry her again, but Nabooru just sort of shifted awkwardly. When Nabooru looked like she was going to say something else Link rolled his eyes and hoisted Ruto up above his head just like he had done the first time. She yelped a little, but he ignored it. They had a job to get done and they were wasting time. Link just wanted to get out of Jabu-Jabu before he actually got used to the smell.

Link turned and left the room through the cave passages he knew led to the parasite's tentacle's. He felt the floor move as Nabooru snapped out of her shock and ran after them. He was pleasantly surprised when she started popping the bubbles with her spear so Link didn't have to worry about it.

They slowly made their way through Jabu-Jabu's digestive track. Link had quickly come to the conclusion that he had to get the boomerang if he didn't want to use the Zora Mask, and the rooms with the map and compass had tentacles that needed to be destroyed. He hated this.

After Link threw Ruto for the third time, Nabooru gently suggested that Princess Ruto either walk or let her carry her instead. Ruto refused. Link suspected that Ruto actually liked being thrown.

Link did not let Ruto grab the Zora's Sapphire when they came to the room with it. The giant octopus still descended even though Link used his boomerang to hook the stone. He gritted his teeth and threw Ruto and the jewel onto the disk as he prepared for what he knew would be an arduous battle. The monster turned to run, and suddenly, Nabooru was there spear in hand, skewering the monster's vulnerable back. Link rushed in and killed the octorok as it screeched.

Nabooru pulled her spear out of the monster and sighed as she got it even slimier wiping it on the walls of the cavern. Link stared at her in awe. He gave her a surprisingly human closed-mouth grin. He was so glad that this fight wasn't as grueling as the last one he had with that thing.

He and Nabooru joined Ruto on the disk and they were lifted onto the upper level of Jabu-Jabu's digestive tract. The three of them made their way through the rest of the dungeon, though Link had urged Nabooru to take Ruto and leave. It was easier than Link remembered, but then again, so many things now were.

When they finally arrived in the chamber with the parasite, Link motioned for Nabooru and Ruto to stand back. He didn't want the distraction of having them too close for this. Nabooru only set Ruto down and drew her spear. Link glared at her. This was going to be a hard fight and while he was grateful for the help, he needed to do this alone.

"This is my fight," he said, hoping Nabooru would understand. She hesitated and for a second Link was afraid she wouldn't be down. Then, her shoulders slumped and she nodded and put away her spear.

Link walked to the center of the room and the parasite Barinade descended.

The first thing he did was begin to sever its connections to the ceiling. The parasite made to shoot electricity at him, but Link moved faster. He threw his boomerang, severing the last of the connections and Barinade fell to the floor with a satisfying thwap.

It summoned Biris. Link killed them with his boomerang and then wailed away at its body; his stronger sword did far more damage this time around. Like with King Dodongo, the monster fell far more quickly. Link had barely started attacking after the second wave of biris when he felt something give in the main body. There was a loud 'pop' and fluid started gushing from the spot where Link's sword impaled Barinade's flesh. He pulled it out and more fluid gushed out. More popping sounds followed and the monster all but exploded, viscous fluid showering the room.

Like within the Goron Mines, no glowing circle appeared.

Link turned to face Nabooru and Ruto. They stared at him as he motioned towards the exit of the cavern. They only started following after he reached the door. Link suspected it was because of the stench of the slime covering him, but, by the odd look in their eyes, he couldn't be sure.

* * *

Link walked out of Lord Jabu-Jabu's mouth and immediately jumped into the lake. He felt disgusting and knew he smelt worse, not that the other two smelt any better. Nabooru's hair was thick with slime.

Link knew that jumping into the lake might count as "running off", but he figured that he could argue that making himself not smell like fish guts was part of "make negotiations easier, not harder".

He felt Nabooru and Ruto staring at him as he scrubbed water over his face. He ignored it. They were out of the main slime-radius, they could wait, though the last time Ruto had ended up in the lake with him.

He wasn't surprised when he heard the faint splash of Ruto slipping into the water. The bigger splash that was Nabooru did. He turned abruptly to see her, only to find himself face to face with Ruto. He stiffened; Ruto was blushing. He remembered this part.

"You! You looked cool..." She blushed a little more and looked at the water between them, "Cooler than I thought you would, anyway... Just a little!"

Behind Ruto, Link could see Nabooru chuckling. He glared. She winked.

Ruto looked up and locked eyes with Link. "Well, anyway" she said, "You saved me, so I guess I'll reward you. What do you wish? Just tell me..."

Link shook his head, "Nothing. I am glad you are safe."

"Surely you must want something!" she insisted.

Link shook his head again, ignoring Nabooru laughing in the background.

Ruto pouted at him and he floated there awkwardly, looking for a way out.

When it became apparent that Link wasn't going to say anything more, Ruto fixed him with a look. "I have to reward you with something," she said. Then her expression abruptly brightened and she smiled, sharp teeth showing. "Why don't I give you this?" she asked, pulling out the Zora's Sapphire, "My mother said I should only give it to the man who will be my husband. You might call it a Zora Engagement Ring!"

Link shook his head hard. That was not what he wanted, not at all. His goal was to keep the spiritual stones where they were supposed to be, not take them for himself. That's how Ganondorf had gotten them last time.

Ruto was glaring at him again. "I am offering you my hand in marriage! Don't you know what that means!"

Link wasn't sure he did, but that wasn't the point. He started to panic. Nabooru let out a loud guffaw behind them, before wading over, her hair mostly deslimed.

"Link is just nervous, Princess," she explained with a wink in Link's direction, "We were sent here by your father. It wouldn't do to accept any proposals without his permission."

Ruto sniffed, but nodded and climbed on to the dais. "Come then," she said, "We must go speak to my father."

As Link and Nabooru clambered out themselves, Link whispered, "That is not why I did not want it."

Nabooru gave him a mischievous grin. "I never said it was."

As they made their way into the throne room, Link could hear Ruto recounting the tale of her rescue to both the Zora court and the Gerudo delegation. Link groaned. He hated it when people told stories of his "heroics". Nabooru took her place beside Artji, whispering some unknown details. Link wished he could understand, but they were speaking Gerudo and Noona seemed far more interested in the state of his tunic than in translating.

He was pulled back to the room when Ruto exclaimed, "But he was too nervous to accept my sapphire, Father! Please make him say yes!"

Link could feel the blood draining from his face as the entire room turned to face him. Link did not want the sapphire, but the Zora King could make negotiations very difficult if he said no. Link was surprised when the giant king laughed.

"My dear Ruto," he said gently, "Link is Hylian. He may look your age, but he is far too young to accept a marriage proposal." He looked down at Link with a calculating eye. "Though perhaps in a few years time... No," he looked back to his pouting daughter, "We have negotiations to attend to and any engagements with a foreign party would only complicate them."

To Link's surprise, that was that. Ruto pouted, but that was it. The rest of the day was spent on negotiations and agonizingly particular formal Hylian. Link zoned out for most of it. He couldn't understand many of the archaic terms, and he didn't care to. He needed to know the gist, not the specifics.

The next two days were spent the same way, with the parties breaking in the evening for good food and rest. At the end of it, the gist was that, like the Gorons, the Zora would not outright break their agreements with Hyrule. However, the Zora didn't trust the Hylians the same way the Gorons did. They remembered times when they themselves had been labeled monsters. Setting a precedent for genocide based on an "evil" label was the last thing they wanted.

"We will wait and see," the Zora King had said on the final evening of negotiations, "We cannot afford to anger our allies, but we will not stand by and watch any atrocities they might commit. On that you have my word."

The next morning, the entire Gerudo delegation teleported back to the Gerudo Fortress.

"What now?" Link asked Nabooru as they stood in the dusty courtyard.

It was Koume, who had come to greet the group with the other councilmembers, who answered.

"Now, boy?" she asked with a cackle, "Now, we wait."

Link felt his stomach sink. He hated waiting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I was going to have Link be a little more fussy about having companions along, but then I realized he was used to Navi and Tatl, both of whom are infinitely more fussy.
> 
> Have a question about my world building? Please ask!
> 
> Constructive criticism and feedback is encouraged.


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